PROJECT: Nightmare
by Ztarlight
Summary: Inspired by the work of his grandfather, Dr. Robotnik develops his own UltimateLife Prototype. But when Nightmare emerges into the world, how is he to cope with strangers who recognize him as Shadow? **COMPLETE**
1. Prologue

[I'd just like to say that I know that darkshadow has a fic with the same name. I'm NOT trying to copy him; in fact, I came up with the plan for this fic the day before he uploaded his. Oh yeah, and I own nothing here. You can stop looking at this pointless authour's note and read now.]  
  
  
PROJECT: Nightmare  
Prologue  
  
  
Sure, he may have sided with them, but it was only to save his own skin. Without their help, he surely would've died, and the data of Project: Shadow would've been lost forever.  
  
But no. Fate allowed him another chance to finish his life; a chance to create life. And with the proper equipment and given time, life was created. A soul to call his own work.  
  
No, Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik did not bear a son, but he considered his work as his offspring, and would raise it as his own child. The data and equipment that Gerald had used to create Shadow was nothing short of amazing, but that was well over 50 years ago. Technology had advanced well beyond the limits that held it back in those days. Now, a more powerful life form could be created; one that could survive space without Emerald power...  
  
How is that possible? one may ask. You see, one thing that Ivo learned about Shadow was that he was created to harness the power of the Chaos Emeralds. This creation, would be different. He would be CREATED by harnessing the power of the Chaos Emeralds, therefore he would always have Chaos strength within him.  
  
Now, one may want to know how Ivo managed to retrieve the Emeralds. Well, you don't think he'd go through all that work to get them for the Eclipse Cannon and then just leave them on the ARK, now would you? Of course you wouldn't. Just because he's an egghead doesn't necessarily mean he's stupid, though there are people who would beg to differ. Moving on...  
  
At long last, after waiting nearly 6 months, the day had arrived when Ivo could awaken his creation; his menace upon the Earth. But he could not try to enslave it. No, Perfect Chaos had taught him that. He would first have to gain its trust, then teach it that he was in charge. After all, he would be just like a father to this... whatever it would be.  
  
That's right; he didn't know what form it would take, nor could he see it. In order for the life data to develop, it would have to be enclosed in a dark area, much like a womb. He encased it in a dark capsule and allowed it to grow. Humming a light tune to himself, Ivo entered the storage chamber of his hidden lair and slowly removed the tinted casing, anxious to see the being inside. Perhaps this would help him decide a name for the creature.  
  
A hiss of hydraulics as the casing was pulled back, and then, a whisper.  
  
"No..."  
  
That... thing in the capsule... it couldn't be. It just couldn't be...  
  
"It just can't be..."  
  
For in the capsule, was a creature that was, or at least looked exactly like...  
  
"Shadow..."  
  
Ivo shook his head. This can't be right... why would it look like Shadow? He wasn't the ultimate lifeform... he died in his fall to earth.  
  
Didn't he?  
  
A moan from inside the capsule.  
  
(Shit. He's waking up.) Well, it was too late to kill the prototype and start over, so he might as well just try to get along with what he had. But still...  
  
"What... happened?"  
  
The black fur... the messy spikes... the white tuft on the chest...  
  
"Where am I?" It looked at Ivo.  
  
The blood red eyes... it was a perfect replica of Shadow.  
  
"...WHO am I?!"  
  
So perfect... it was such a... "Nightmare."  
  
~*~*~*~  
  
So, whad'ya think? Should I continue? Should I stop here? Should I shoot myself for even writing this? LET ME KNOW! R&R! 


	2. Discovery

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter One: Discovery  
  
  
" 'Never Imagining Greater Hurt Than Marring A Realm Eternal'..."  
  
"What are you doing, Amy?"  
  
"Huh? Oh hi, Tails."  
  
It was another warm summer afternoon filled with sunshine, and Amy Rose sat in the library park flipping through some books that caught her interest while eating some lunch. "I'm just looking through some books on ancient prophecies and things like that." She crunched on her apple a bit more and skimmed a few more pages.  
  
"Ancient prophecies?" he asked, sliding on the bench across the table from her. "You believe those things?"  
  
"Hey, some of these are pretty interesting!"  
  
"Yeah, but it's not like they come true..."  
  
"Perfect Chaos was a prophecy, and that came true."  
  
"Well, yeah, but... that was different."  
  
Amy glared at the two-tailed fox. "It was not! You just don't want to admit you're wrong!"  
  
Tails shrugged. "Who ever WANTS to admit being wrong?"  
  
"Ha! You do admit it!"  
  
"What? Did not!"  
  
"You did too!"  
  
"No I... oh, forget it." Tails knew there was no sense in arguing with Amy, mainly because he always lost the argument.  
  
Amy closed her current book and set it with two more that she was going to borrow. "Fine, whatever." She tossed her brown paper bag away and walked inside the library.  
  
Tails shook his head and sighed. "Girls... I wonder what Sonic is up to?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Currently Sonic was lounging around at the local seasonal hot dog stand, poking his chili dog. He knew he was hungry, but he just couldn't eat it. He kept sighing and gazing out over the bay. Sigh, gaze, poke. Sigh, gaze, poke. He kept this up for about fifteen minutes before looking to the heavens and asking in despair "Why?"  
  
Why, he wanted to know. Why did it have to happen? Why did he have to die? Why... "Why Shadow?"  
  
No matter how much Sonic thought about it, it would never make sense. Life was just far too complicated to simply replicate like that, which may have been Gerald's biggest flaw -- as well as Shadow's downfall.  
  
With enough time, Sonic managed to down his lunch and a soda to follow. It didn't really make him feel any better, though. Just less hungry.  
  
Tails sped around the corner and grinned at the sight of Sonic. "Heh. I figured I'd find you here..."  
  
"Uh huh...."  
  
Tails frowned. They usually shared a good laugh at that joke. (What's going on?) "Sonic, are you okay?"  
  
"...Are we ever okay, Tails?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Wha... oh. Sorry."  
  
Tails furrowed his brows in worry. "Sonic, what's going on? You're never that philisophical."  
  
"Yeah, I know. I guess I'm just kinda... confused, or something. Don't worry about it."  
  
"......Whatever you say, Sonic." Tails turned to look out over the sea. "Wow, what a view..."  
  
"...uh huh..." Sonic mumbled, getting lost into thought again. (What if he fell in the ocean?)  
  
"The ocean is so deep, so calm..."  
  
(It would be the perfect final resting spot...)  
  
"That is, when it's not angered by a storm."  
  
(That sounds just like Shadow!) Without thinking, Sonic leapt over the wooden guardrail securing the dock patio from the water and dove in, pushing to the bottom.  
  
Tails just watched with utmost curiosity.  
  
About 30 seconds later, the blue hedgehog resurfaced, looking wet and dissapointed.  
  
"Looking for sunken treasure?" the fox grinned.  
  
"Very funny."  
  
"I'm serious!" He cried to Sonic as he dried himself off... the best he could with napkins, anyway. "You just leapt in there with no warning and swam like there was no tomorrow! What is going on with you?!"  
  
Sonic sighed. He might as well tell him...  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nightmare flipped through another book.  
  
And sighed another sigh.  
  
"Everything is so boring..." He spat. "All things must learn to survive, but I think I've done enough learning. It's time to experience." He stood up and headed towards the door to his room, but stopped suddenly and turned around to examine it.  
  
It was a small room, simple, but certainly cozy, at least Nightmare seemed to think so. Everything was black - the walls, the ceiling, the pillows, the bed, the bedsheets, and the carpet. Yes, it was dark, but it suited him. The Doctor was nice enough to let him choose everything, which surprised Nightmare considerably, especially with the bad rap that Robotnik had.  
  
At least, the biography had said he was really bad. Nightmare didn't know for sure. He had only been alive a short while, and the Doctor was quite patient with him, teaching him "everything a soul should know".  
  
"But is it really everything?" He looked to the ceiling. "Not everything can be taught... I'm sure SOME of life's lessons have to be experienced." He nodded, face set with determination. "There's only one way to find out." He walked down to the main corridor and headed for the exit.  
  
"And where are you off to?"  
  
Nightmare turned around. "I'm tired of reading! For the past month, all I've seen was book after book after book after book after book!! I'm tired of seeing my life in black and white! I want to get out and experience my life! Only then can I truly learn something..."  
  
"Hmm..." Eggman nodded. The hedgehog certainly had a point. "Very well. But I want you back here by 8."  
  
"8?! That's hardly 3 hou---"  
  
"Now now, you mustn't be hasty. Just get a feel for things, and tomorrow I'll let you go out a little longer."  
  
"Alright! Thanks, Doctor." Nightmare nodded in a respectful bow and dashed out the door.  
  
Ivo watched his "son" curiously. He began to ponder whether or not Gerald felt this way after the creation of Shadow. In spite of his true intentions with Nightmare, he couldn't help thinking how good a feeling it was to rear a child, to bring up a life, to protect a soul. Finally, he had a person to follow in his footsteps. It may have been the only way to keep the Robotnik legend alive, and if this was his legacy, then so be it. He had to make sure...  
  
"The world must never forget Dr. Eggman... and with Nightmare's help, I can be sure of it!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"*sigh* Another day, another dollar."  
  
Rouge the Bat walked out of the consignment shop with the earrings she had just bought. Pure Austrian crystal, priced at 5 dollars. Second-hand or not, it was something to add to her collection. Her collection. Nothing more. Just a display of something nice to look at. Nothing more. It had no purpose; it was just there. Nothing more. Much like herself... she was just there.  
  
And God, was it ever BORING. She may have not gotten as much pay as she would've liked when she was a treasure hunting spy, but it did give her something to keep her mind occupied. Especially since the death of Shadow. While her heart was truly set on Knuckles, she felt a small piece of friendship for the self-proclaimed Ultimate LifeForm.  
  
So of course, one one of her dull, ordinary shopping trips to the city, when she saw a black hedgehod with red stripes, she couldn't help but to gawk and stare in disbelief.  
  
The black fur... the messy spikes... the white tuft on the chest... she drank in his presence. Could it be? Was it him? She took a breath to call out his name.  
  
He looked at her.  
  
She gasped in alarm. Right down to the blood red eyes... It was Shadow. It had to be. Slowly she approached him.  
  
He gave her a funny look and started walking away.  
  
She walked faster.  
  
He sped up.  
  
She sped up.  
  
He broke into a full run.  
  
Rouge frowned. Why was he running away? (Maybe taunting him on the ARK wasn't a smart move after all...) She scaled up a wall and hopped from roof to roof until she saw him take shelter in an alley. Swiftly she climbed down until she hung about five feet above him.  
  
She went in for the kill.  
  
"I've got you now, Shadow!" She latched onto him from behind.  
  
Shadow yelped in shock, then turned his head to see his captor. He screamed and flipped her over his head, making Rouge land on her back. She jumped up, causing him to take a defensive pose. "What do you want with me?!" He cried, eyes wide with fear.  
  
Rouge was taken aback. "What the... don't you recognize me?"  
  
"RECOGNIZE you? This is the first time I've ever been outside! Why the hell would I recognize you?!"  
  
(He doesn't.... know me...) "Oh!" (He must've lost his memory! That's it...) "Look Shadow, I think something happened to you on the fall to earth. I might be able to help."  
  
He stared at her in disbelief. "....What?"  
  
Rouge glared. Patience was not one of her better attributes. She grabbed Shadow by his white tuft and held his face close to hers. "Shadow, listen to me, you little freak of nature. We're going to find a way to jog you memory so you remember who you are."  
  
"Shadow? Wha... what are you talking about?"  
  
"Oh God, you're even worse then I thought."  
  
"You crazy bat woman!" The hedgehog broke free of her grasp and delivered a hard kick to her stomach. "I am NOT Shadow. Get it through your head!!"  
  
Rouge stood up, holding a hand to her stomach, trying not to show any pain. "Then... who are you?"  
  
The hedgehog's light-skates flared wildly, lifting him up into the air. He glared hard, and his voice seemed to deepen. "I... am Nightmare... and I'm about to become your worst!"  
  
Rouge gaped in fear as Nightmare began to glow green. He sped towards her at lightning fast speed, connecting his head into her stomach, sending her flying through the alley and slamming into a wall. She fell unconcious instantly.  
  
Breathing a bit heavier then before, Nightmare walked down the alley and gripped Rouge's wrist. "Hm, she's still alive... That's unusual. I guess I should start training." He stood up and gave one last good glare at the bat before walking out of the alley. He headed towards the train station. "I'm going home... before someone else 'recognizes' me." 


	3. The Aftermath

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter 2: The Aftermath  
  
  
"Well?" Tails inquired. "What is it?"  
  
"It's... well, it's Shadow."  
  
"What about him?" Tails kept his tone quiet and concerned.  
  
"Well it's just that, I... well, I miss him. He was a good person." Sonic sighed and glanced away. "I just... wish I could've gotten to know him better before he died."  
  
Tails placed a hand on the blue hedgehog's shoulder. "I know what you mean Sonic, but what does that have to do with you jumping in the water?"  
  
"I want to find his body. If I want to pay my true respects, he should have a proper burial. Know what I mean?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
Silence surfaced between them. Tails cleared his throat. "You know Sonic? Maybe you'd feel better if you went for a run."  
  
Sonic tilted his head, still focused on the water. "You're right, Tails. A good sprint seems to lift my spirits." He stuck his finger in his mouth and held it up. "Hmm... a west breeze today..." He took a breath, geared up, and zoomed out of there.  
  
Tails debated whether to follow not. "Right now he'd probably find me a nuisince..." He caught a glimpse of the burger/hot dog stand. "I'll go get some supper."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A lone red figure standing on the dock across town watched Sonic run by, carefree and seeming at so much ease. "Sonic doesn't know how lucky he is..."  
  
Knuckles the Echidna sighed in deep melencholy. "I'd do anything have his free-willed spirit for one day." Alas, being free willed didn't work in the Guardian's favor, who had managed to lock up the Master Emerald to have some time down on the main earth. Secure as it was, he was still very nervous, and decided it was about time to go back.  
  
As he made his way across the boardwalk, he had to notice the sun was setting. Such a lovely mix of orange, pink, red, green...  
  
(Waitaminute. Sunsets aren't green... but that thing in the alley is!) Immediately suspicious, Knuckles carefully made his way over to the glowing object. He ducked behind a trash recepticle and looked on.   
  
The glow stopped.  
  
A black form emerged from the cloud. It walked into the alley, then darted out, and headed for the train station.  
  
Knuckles' jaw hit the ground. That wasn't... but it was.... but it couldn't be...  
  
Forget that; he was on the train headed for White Island. Knuckles decided he could investigate later; right now his curiosity was on what was in the alley that the black hedgehog went back for.  
  
He jumped over a few trashcans and shoved a dumpster out of his path. "Man... whatever went on over here, it must've been a major battle. I wonder who--- ROUGE!"  
  
With expert speed, Knuckles made his way to the back of the alley where the bat lay. He carefully lifted her head and gave her a gentle shake. "Rouge... say something..."  
  
No response. He checked her breathing and pulse; normal. "Well, I can't just leave her lying here..." He sighed. What to do... he still didn't trust her completely, but she might die if left in the alley. "Chances are no one else would come back here...." With an annoyed groan, he hoisted her up. "Guess I'll have to take her back to Angel Island with me." He shifted her in his arms, and noticed that his glove was soaked in red liquid. Gasping, her held her and carefully took in all of the wounds on her body. "Oh yeah, I'm DEFINATELY not leaving her here."  
  
But how in world would he carry her? He couldn't fly up with his arms full...  
  
An idea occurred. He kicked over a trashcan and found some old clothes. He grabbed a belt and a few neckties and used those to tie her onto his back. He looked ridiculous, but at least this way he could safely catch the updrafts that would take him back home.  
  
With a slight grunt, Knuckles ran back towards the dock. Rushing fast into the wind, he caught the updraft and flew home, hoping that Rouge would be alright when they got there.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
With a loud grunt, Nightmare slammed the door to his room. "Stupid people... no wonder the Doctor doesn't like me going outside." He pouted and sat on the bed. "Still... I can't just let them make a fool out of me. Maybe I should go back... then they'll remember my name forever!" He stood up, grinning wildly like a child. "Yeah! They'll learn who Nightmare is! I will become an infinate legand!!" He yawned. "Wah... I guess infinate legends need sleep, huh?" He yawned again and giggled madly before finally drifting off, full of sweet images of revenge.  
  
Eggman listened to the whole thing intently, pondering Nightmare's words. "Already talking out loud to himself..." He grinned full of glee. "He's catching on so fast!" Carefully he crept away, careful not to wake his "son".  
  
It had been just over a month, and Nightmare had already made some incredible developments. He was borne past the infancy stage, which suited Ivo just fine, since diaper changing wasn't his idea of a good time. But beyond that, he was maturing quickly, and what Ivo was concerned most with were his emotions. He wouldn't be a complete LifeForm without emotions, and now they would be nearing their peak. Ivo was concerned that Nightmare would question his creation, his past, and worst of all, his name.  
  
Nightmare knew what a nightmare was, and so far, it was his dream to become one. Odd, but true. Ivo was pleased of the vengence and the evil that he had put into his creation. Yet, if Nightmare began to wonder WHY he was named that, he would learn of Shadow, and as things fell together, he might conclude himself to be a mere clone, and turn on Ivo for bringing him into the world to feel such pain.  
  
No... as Nightmare's father figure, Ivo had to do everything in his power to manipulate Nightmare's will to think about such things. His focus had to always remain on his protection, his well-being, his will to survive. Survive... that's what he must do.  
  
"I wonder how his trip to the city went....?"  
  
He'd have to ask him tomorrow.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
*clop clop clop*  
  
The heels of Amy Rose's boots clapped against the wooden floor as she stepped out of the elevator and into her apartment. She jangled her keys for a moment and opened the door. God, what a day... but she got some really nice books from the library.  
  
She locked the door and walked into her bedroom, flopping onto the bed. After sinking into the mattress for a moment, she rolled over and examined one of the books she borrowed. " 'Winds of Time'..." she read aloud. "Such a pretty name. I wonder what kind of stuff is really in here..." she flipped through the Table of Contents. "I had only skimmed it before."  
  
Before too long, though, Amy grew extremely weary. (I'll save them for tomorrow. After all, I have three weeks to keep them!) Yawning, she changed into her pink nightgown and slid under the covers. Reaching for her homemade Sonic doll, she clicked off the light. "Goodnight, Sonikku." She kissed its nose affectionately and listend to the rain starting to fall. She dozed off soon after.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Knuckles panted rapidly, pushing his way through the winds. A storm had suddenly blown in, making it seem darker then it really was, and with Angel Island up as high as it was, pushing through the clouds - especially with extra weight - is not an easy task, even for someone as strong as himself.  
  
He was never as relieved as he was the moment he set foot on the island. Rain had started to fall by this point, and it was getting heavier by the moment. Quickly Knuckles cut though the belt and ties. It would be easier to carry Rouge in his arms rather then to have her flopping on his back as he ran.  
  
Within a few minutes, they had reached a small hut. It was raining buckets, and small hailstones were falling at the feet of the Guardian. (This is a really bad storm... God knows what would've happened to Rouge had she been left out in this.)  
  
She was still unsoncious. Knuckles brought her inside and laid her down on his bed. He had to get her out of those wet clothes, but... he couldn't just undress her!! The least he could do was take her boots off, which he did, and wrapped her up on soft blankets to hopefully restore her normal body temperature. He didn't know if she was running a chill, but she was cold, so better safe then sorry.  
  
It wasn't quite nine, but the sky outside told otherwise. Knuckles gently stroked Rouge's cheek. "Whatever hit her, it must've been tough. Rouge doesn't get taken out easily." He sighed and stroked her some more. "Don't worry... you'll be safe with me." He suddenly caught what he was saying.  
  
(Why am I protecting her? This is the same girl who tried to steal my Emerald!) But, on the other hand, she was also completely helpless, and Knuckles... kinda-sorta-maybe liked her, and well, he DID save her life once... "It won't kill me to do it again, right?" He shook his head. He'd have to work out his emotions later. Right now, he neeeded to check on the Master Emerald. He stood up and headed towards the door.  
  
Turning the lamp down to a dim setting, Knux took one last look at the sleeping bat beauty. He noticed that her expression had changed slightly, she mouth was turned up, as if she was smiling. Knuckles grinned in return. "You're welcome, Rouge. Sweet dreams."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
//Running...//  
  
Faster than the Wind, his element.  
  
//Running...//  
  
Did that mean he had beaten himself?  
  
//Running...//  
  
No... it meant he was getting ahead of himself.  
  
//Running...//  
  
But where was he getting? Where was he going?  
  
SLAM!  
  
Sonic, not paying the least bit of attention, had smacked into the side of yet another mailbox. "Owww..." he moaned, rubbing his nose. "That's the third one today..." Why couldn't he focus? Maybe because it was so late...  
  
(But it's only 8:30.)  
  
He felt wet. Looking up, he noticed the sky had gotten extremely dark. Rain was starting to fall. Sonic shook his head out, and then started running. Perhaps a run in the rain is what the doctor ordered. Yes.. the rain could wash away his doubts, his fears,  
  
his pain.  
  
Why did he feel so pained about Shadow's passing on? It's not like they were in love. But Sonic did have a fondness for the black hedgehog, and he was sure he felt some respect... In a way, he looked up to Shadow. Shadow was fast, powerful, and sly. He did save Sonic from his space death; teaching him about Chaos Control.  
  
Chaos Control.  
  
That was it.  
  
Shadow was alive.  
  
He had to be.  
  
When he fell into the atmosphere, he was still fused with the Chaos Emeralds. He should've been able to Chao Control to the surface! But... it's been over seven months since the ARK incident...  
  
Sonic shook his head. No more bad thoughts. His friend had a chance of being alive; that's all that mattered right now. 


	4. The Morning After

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Three: The Morning After  
  
  
A light moan emitted from the bedroom. "Where... am I?"  
  
He looked up the the sound. Quietly he crept down to where she lay, waiting in the doorway.  
  
Rouge sat up and held her head, feeling dizzy. "I feel like I went through the spin cycle..." Regaining her focus, she made the figure in the doorway out to be Knuckles. "Wha... YOU! What did you do to me?!"  
  
Knuckled changed position, leaning on the opposite beam. "Hey, don't get hasty. I only found you unconsious in an alleyway, brought you here to my house during a thunderstorm, dried you off, and stayed up all night to make sure you'd still be alive in the morning. Is that a valid answer?"  
  
"Oh." Rouge instantly felt stupid. He was just trying to help her and all she could do was accuse him. "...Th...thank you, Knuckles."  
  
He looked at her in surprise. THAT certainly wasn't expected. "...You're welcome." he spoke softly with sincerity.  
  
"Agh!" Rouge keeled over, her head throbbing in pain. She gripped her forehead with both hands. "Ah ah ah... owww..."  
  
In an instant he was at her side, gloved hand placed gently on her upper back. "Rouge, are you alright?"  
  
"Gnnngh..." was all he got as a reply.  
  
"Are you alright?" he repeated.  
  
"I will be... if I can get... some asprin..."  
  
"OH! Right, stupid me."  
  
"I-it's all... alright..." she said feebly as he ran out of the room. Oh, the pain!! She bit her lip in an attempt not to scream.  
  
"Here HERE!" Knuckles rushed back into the room and handed her two white pills and a glass of water.  
  
Gasping frantically, Rouge gulped down the medicine and then flopped back on the pillows. She began to pant heavily. "Th-thanks..." she breathed out. "My head feels like it's in a clamp."  
  
"Are you sure you'll be okay?"  
  
"Yeah, I'll be fine. At least I still remember my name..."  
  
"...And you remembered me."  
  
Rouge looked away and smiled. "Heh. I'd never be able to forget you..."  
  
Knuckles grinned shyly. Then his expression fell serious. "Do you remember what happened?"  
  
Rouge rubber her temple in thought and frowned. "There was... someone. I was trying to follow him."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"He looked familiar to me."  
  
"From where?"  
  
"What is this, 20 Questions?!"  
  
"Sorry." Knuckles held out his hands in defense. "I just want to know how you managed to get beaten to a bloody pulp."  
  
Rouge glared. "I was NOT beaten to a bloody pulp! Jeeze, I'm not that weak.. and I might've won the fight of that hedgehog hadn't done that freaky attack on me."  
  
"Freaky... attack?" Knuckles thought back to what he saw from the dock. "Was it green?"  
  
"Uh huh."  
  
"And it was done by a black hedgehog that looked like Shadow?"  
  
"Yeah... how did you know?"  
  
"I saw the whole thing. I wanted to follow the hedgehog, but I saw that he was getting on the train for White Island, something I could always look into later. My first thought was 'What was in the alley?". So I looked, and it happened to be not a what, but a who."  
  
Rouge gave a small smile, but she avoided Knuckles' gaze. "Listen, Knux... can I call you Knux?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Okay, Knux... uh..." she bit her knuckle in nervousness, "Thanks for coming after me. I... hope I haven't been too much trouble..."  
  
"None at all."  
  
"Well, whatever. Thanks a bunch." She slid out of bed and put her boots on. "I probably should be going."  
  
"You sure you'll be okay for the trip?"  
  
"I'm pretty tough, you know." She smiled slyly as she headed for the door.  
  
"Oh yeah, I know!" Knuckles grinned. "Sure you don't want to stay for breakfast? I was going to make blueberry pancakes in the shape of Eggman's head."  
  
Rouge skidded to a halt in the doorway. "And why the hell would I want to eat blueberry pancakes in the shape of Eggman's head?"  
  
"So you can stab his little blueberry eyes out with a knife and make him bleed butter."  
  
She giggled. "Makes sense, since that bumbling idiot is stuffed full of lard anyway..."  
  
"So?"  
  
"...Oh, alright. I'll stay for breakfast. But not too long. I'm just as curious about that Shadow twin as you are."  
  
Knuckles took her hand and walked with her to the kitchen. "Deal."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"OhhhOOOHHHoohhh... Sonic, ah luv yuuu..."  
  
Amy Rose murmured softly in her sleep confessions of affection for her hedgehog hero. Groggily she opened her eyes and focused on the doll in her arms. "Aww, hewwo Sonikku..." she drawled, hugging the toy to her cheek. "Sonikku, you're wet... I think I was drooling again."  
  
Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, Amy rose from her spot on the bed to wash and dress. Within minutes, she was looking as cute and cheerful as the day before. Yet she still wasn't happy.  
  
"Another morning, another day of trying to win Sonic over." She sighed. "When will he see that I'm not trying to tie him down, I'm not trying to hold him back, and I'm DEFINATLY not trying to keep him from doing what he loves." She reached for the doll on her pillow. "I just want to care about him! I just want to take care of him!" She started thrashing the doll around, beating it in rhythm to her words. "I JUST want to BE there when he ... NEEDS ME!!!" She panted heavily and looked at her doll, which in its current state, had seen better days.  
  
She tossed it back onto the bed and decided to fix it later. "It just gets so BORING after a while." She closed her eyes in thought. "If it weren't for my books, I don't know what I'd do!"  
  
She gasped. "My books!" Diving across the bed towards the end-table, she snatched up her books. "That's right, I said I wanted to go through these." She walked into the kitchen, started heating up some water for cocoa, and sat at the table.  
  
" 'Winds of Time'..." She breathed in awe. "I wonder if I'd be able to write something with a such a beautiful name..." She flipped through a few pages, looking for something really interesting. " 'Never Imagining Greater Hurt Than Marring A Realm Eternal'... I wonder what it means."  
  
The water started to boil.  
  
She picked up the other book. "This one is called 'Waters of Light'." She flipped through a few pages, looking for something really interesting. "Hey... what's this?  
  
The kettle whistled.  
  
"It's another acronym poem. 'Cursing Harm At Other Spirits'..."  
  
Louder.  
  
"...That's it? what... what happens?" Amy shut her book. " 'Winds of Time'... 'Waters of Light'..."  
  
Louder.  
  
"Is there a connection?"  
  
PTHWEEEEEEEEEET!!  
  
"ALL RIGHT, ALL RIGHT, I'M COMING!" Amy glared at what caused her to lose her train of thought. "Oh well. Maybe a good cup of cocoa will help get me the right start." Preparing a cup, she thought aloud about the books.  
  
"Wind and water are elements... but how might light and time be connected? And what about the elemants of earth and fire?" She took a sip. "Maybe I should go back to the library and see if I can find some other books?" She started to pack a lunch. "There has GOT to be more to this story!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sonic hummed a small tune to himself as he walked down the streets of Station Square. "Well, I don't show off; don't criticise..." he sang lightly.  
  
Tails rounded a corner across the street and watched Sonic make his way down the sidewalk. (Is he... skipping?!) "Hey Sonic..." he approached the blue being with caution.  
  
"Good morning, Tails!" He wished cheerfully.  
  
Tails dropped a jaw in shock. This was a drastic change over yesterday evening. "Sonic, are you okay?"  
  
"Never been better. Why do you ask?"  
  
"Well... it's just that yesterday---"  
  
Sonic slapped Tails on the back affectionately. "Tails my boy, forget yesterday. We can't live in the past. Right now, I'm looking forward to the discovery that today might bring to my life."  
  
"Riiiiight... well, I was heading for the library. D'you want to come, or are you looking somewhere else for today's 'discovery'?"  
  
Sonic tapped a finger on his chin. "Actually, the library would be a great place to start. Tons of books filled with all kinds of information... yeah, I think I'll go with you, if you don't mind."  
  
Tails smiled genuinly for the first time in days, happy to have some quality time with his best bud. "I don't mind at all."  
  
"Then it's settled. Let's go!" Sonic started matching forward.  
  
"Uh Sonic?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"The library is this way."  
  
"..................oh."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nightmare sat by the window, contemplating over a muffin as he stared at the trees. Who in the world was Shadow, and why did that bat lady call him that? "I'll make them remember me... somehow..."  
  
"Is everything alright, Nightmare?"  
  
"Wah!" Nightmare whirled around in his seat. "Oh Doctor, you startled me."  
  
"Oh, sorry. But I was worried about you. Is something wrong?"  
  
Nightmare crossed his arms and kicked the air. "People are idiots."  
  
"Tell me about it..." Ivo mumbled to himself. "Really, what is it? Did something happen yesterday?"  
  
Nightmare sighed and looked at the ceiling in thought, as he tried to recall yesterday's events. "Well, it was actually kinda boring until this weird bat started following me."  
  
Bat? This caught Ivo's attention. "What did she look like?"  
  
Nightmare blinked at his creator with surprise. "How did you know it was a girl?"  
  
"Uh... lucky guess!"  
  
The black one shook his head. "Anyway, she was white, with this teensy little black and pink bodysuit. With matching gloves and boots." He shook his head again. "I know it was my first day out into the world, but even I was able to tell she was a fashion mess."  
  
Eggman tried to hide his worry from Nightmare. (Rouge... of all people!) "Did... did she say anything?"  
  
"Yeah." Nightmare's expression grew spiteful again. "She called me Shadow."  
  
(This is bad.)  
  
"But then I kicked her ass, so it wasn't ALL bad."  
  
"You... kicked her ass?"  
  
Nightmare grinned again and jumped on the chair. "Yeah! I totally pulverized her! She hardly put up a fight, though it might've taken longer if it weren't for that green glow."  
  
"What glow?"  
  
He shrugged and hopped down. "It appeared when she got me REALLY ticked off."  
  
Eggman nodded, thinking quickly to himself. He might be able to use this situation to his advantage. "Nightmare... what would you say..."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"What was it that the bat girl said that made you most angry?"  
  
Nightmare scarfed up the rest of his breakfast. "She kept calling me Shadow! And I kept telling her I wasn't Shadow." Back on the chair. "So I made sure to let her know that my name was Nightmare, and that I would become her worst!"  
  
The vengence, the power.... Eggman watched his creation in silence, congratulating himself in the back of his mind.  
  
"Plus, some other people kept staring at me oddly, like they thought of me the same way!"  
  
"Eh?" (Time to focus back on your "son".) "What did these other people look like?"  
  
Nightmare shook his head. "That's wasn't important. What IS important, at least to me, is that I let those idiots know who they're dealing with!" He jumped back to the floor. "Maybe I look kinda like this 'Shadow' figure-person-thing, but that's not who I am! And I want them to remember that forever!!" He clutched onto Ivo's coat and looked up with shiny red eyes. "You know what I mean?"  
  
For a moment, time stopped. Ivo glanced down at Nightmare, clinging to him and waiting for his words, like his reply could make eveything better. (He needs me,) he thought. (He's put his reliance on me. I have to help him out.)  
  
Slowly Ivo reached over and stroked Nightmare's quills. Nightmare's head started to rock back and forth and he closed his eyes in contentment. "Yes..." Ivo finally spoke as time started up again, "I know just how you feel. And I think I can help." He stopped the stroking and walked towards the elevator.  
  
"You... you can? Really?"  
  
"Come with me."  
  
He obeyed. Down the elevator and into a room that Nightmare had rarely seen. In fact, the first and only time he had seen it was when he was going upstairs after first awakening. It was a room full of various gadgets, vials, notes, books, notebooks, and a drawing board. Eggman marched right past this, however, and made his way to a small well-lit table in the back corner.   
  
He held up a small rectangular black disk with a silver border and gave it to Nightmare. "You know what this is, right?"  
  
He studied the settings. "Yes."  
  
"Good. Do you know how to use it?"  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"Okay! Lastly, do you want to permantly embedd yourself into the moronic minds of all those bumbling idiots out there?"  
  
"YES!!"  
  
"Excellent! Now, here's what you do..." 


	5. The Real Imposter

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Four: The Real Imposter  
  
  
  
Amy sat once again at the library bench. So far, her search had only yielded one other book: "Earth of Sound". In this book, like she had suspected, another acronym poem was found. On the very first page; again, like the other books she had seen. Still, no major connection could be found between them, other than the element in the titles. She had suspected there was one more.  
  
You see, in the book of "Earth of Sound", Amy stumbled across, "Embarks Many Evil Realms At Life's Death Sentences". She shut the book, and took note of the decoration on the back cover.  
  
It was a circle, divided into four sections by a "t". In the upper-left hand corner there was a Raindrop; in the upper-right hand corner there was a leaf; in the lower-left hand corner there was a flame; and in the lower-right hand corner there was a tornado. That represented water, earth, fire, and wind. "But where do light, time, and sound come into play?" she wondered aloud. "Better yet, what will the fire title be?"  
  
She didn't know. She needed some help. And little did she know, help was literally right around the corner...  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nightmare stood in silence at what the Doctor had just told him. "You... you want me to...."  
  
"I don't want you to do anything. It was a mere suggestion to get the most out of that item. The question is, do YOU want to do it?"  
  
Nightmare toyed with the black disk with the silver border, thinking. "Yes..." he answered slowly.  
  
Eggman frowned. "I hear some uncertainty in your voice."  
  
"Well... I'm not sure if this is the best way to gain a legacy."  
  
"Oh. Well... there are other ways... but this is the fastest way I can think of."  
  
"Oh." The uncertainty was replaced with dissapointment.  
  
"I'll ask you again, do YOU want to do this?"  
  
Nightmare stared, long and hard, at the rectangle in this grasp. He thought of what happened in the city, what had been said to him. It wasn't just that bat; there were other people. People who did not call him Shadow... they called him worse names. Some of the names he wasn't sure what they meant; and others he was sure he would be better off not knowing. The names, the hurt, the ignorance.. they didn't understand. They'd never understand! He wasn't one of those names! He was Nightmare! And he would make sure they would never forget it.  
  
A glare crossed his face, and he squeezed the black object firmly in his hand. Without fear, doubt, or dissapointment, he spoke. "Yes...." he hissed.  
  
Eggman looked over at him. "Pardon?"  
  
Nightmare kept his gaze focused on his fist, with the disk underneath. "Yes. I want to do this. I HAVE to do this." He glanced up at the Doctor. "They must never forget me..."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Miles "Tails" Prower walked cheerfully by the side of his best friend, Sonic the Hedgehog, as they made their way around the back to the library courtyard. Such a lovely day for a walk... especially for early November. Yeah, so they were going to be in the library for much of this beautiful day, but at least the walking part went smoothly.  
  
That is, it went smoothly until Sonic spotted Amy Rose sitting on a bench, reading.  
  
"Hi Amy!" The orange fox next to him called out. Sonic bit his lip in nervousness.  
  
Amy turned at the sound of his voice. She spied them and waved. "Hi Sonic; hi Tails," and looked back at her book.  
  
This was a shocking event for Sonic. No squeals of glee? No rabid giggling? No clinging to his arm and shouting, "Marry Me, Sonikku!"? "What is going on...?" He walked over to the bench. "Amy, is everything okay?"  
  
"Mmhmm." She crunched on a carrot.  
  
That's when Tails took note of Amy studying three books, other then the two she had yesterday. "Amy, you found another book?"  
  
She nodded. "Uh huh. This one is called 'Earth of Sound'. I want to get the last book so see if I can find anything."  
  
Sonic stood there, dumbfounded. "What are you guys talking about?!"  
  
Amy sighed. "That's right, you weren't here yesterday... okay, Tails and I will try to explain."  
  
Tails raised his eyebrows. "We will?"  
  
"Yes." First, Amy gave Sonic a piece of paper. "There are three acronym poems on this paper; one poem was found on the first page of each book. You follow?"  
  
He nodded.  
  
"Okay. I think that there is one more book missing, because of this." She showed him the back cover decoration. "This design is on all three books."  
  
"Okay..."  
  
"The books are called 'Earth of Sound', 'Water of Light', and 'Winds of Time'. I want to find the last book so I can put the riddle together. But I don't know what it's called!"  
  
Sonic lined up all three books and thought for a moment. Then he looked at the decoration on the back. The flame... it was a fire. But what would it pair with? Fire of what? Light, time, sound... where did it fit?   
  
Amy smiled, trying to hide her dissapointment. "Well, thanks anyway, Sonic." She picked up the books.  
  
"Fire of Heat."  
  
Amy and Tails stopped, and turned to look at Sonic. "Wh... what was that, Sonic?" Amy asked?  
  
"Fire of Heat." He repeated.  
  
Tails picked up the books. "How did you figure that out?"  
  
"Earth, water, and wind are all types of elements. The last element would be fire. And light, time, sound, and HEAT are all forms of matter that don't take up space."  
  
Amy clapped her hands together happily. "Oh Sonic, you're so smart!!" She leapt off the bench and hugged him.  
  
"Er... thanks, Ames." He struggled free of her clamp-like grasp. Man, did she have a grip! (But at least she's back to normal. That's good... I think.)  
  
" 'Fire of Heat'... well, I'd better go find it!" She grabbed up her books and dashed up the library steps.  
  
"Hey Amy!" Tails called. "what about your lunch?"  
  
"Huh? Oh, you guys can have it. I've got work to do." She went inside.  
  
Sonic grinned and reached inside the paper bag for a tomato. "Hey, free food! I'm not complaining!"  
  
Before he could bite it, however, he saw a black flash atop the library roof. Not daring to fight his curiosity, he set the tomato down. "On second thought, I just remembered of something I had to do." With that, he dissappeared in a streak of cobalt blue.  
  
Tails shrugged and polished off some salad and a piece of chocolate cake. Before long he got bored again. "Maybe I could help Amy with her search." He tossed the bag into the garbage can and headed inside.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Do you have to go so soon?"  
  
"As much as I love your cooking, Knux, I really can't stay any longer." Rouge the Bat walked towards the door of Knuckles' hut. "It was fun, though. Thanks a lot for letting me stay."  
  
"It was no trouble at all, Rouge."  
  
An uncomfortable silence surfaced between them. Knuckles cleared his throat and began to speak. "I... guess this is goo---"  
  
She placed a gloved finger on his lips, silencing him. "No. Don't say goodbye, Knuckles. Don't ever say goodbye. It means we may not ever see each other again." Slowly, she leaned forward and touched him softly on the lips with her own. "And I definately think we'll see each other again." She grinned shyly and made her way out the door. Running to the edge of the island, she leapt over the side and caught the winds for a gentle ride down.  
  
Knuckles watched in amazement at how she did this with so much grace. Yet the kiss was so coy. She was headed to White Island, right? Knuckles stood in thought. He went to go secure the Master Emerald. "You're right, Rouge... we will meet again."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"There he goes..."  
  
Rouge watched in silence she saw Nightmare get off the White Island train. He had a different kind of look on his face. One of set determination, like he was going to do something.  
  
He saw her.  
  
In a flash, he was standing next to her. "You... you haven't died yet?"  
  
Rouge smirked. "Well, let's just say I had a little help from above."  
  
He scoffed. "Doesn't matter, because you'll be dead when I'm done here. You'll ALL be dead!! And those that survive..." he leaned in close, "Will be counting their last seconds."  
  
"Gee, I'm so scared," Knuckles quipped sarcastically as he dropped down from above. "Really, how tough do you think you are?"  
  
Nightmare growled. "That's it. I was pissed at you before, but now you're really going to get it! Say 'goodbye' to your beloved Station Square!!" He dissapeared into the crowd.  
  
Knuckled bit his lip, instantly regretful of taunting the boy. "Rouge..."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Remember what you said about not saying 'goodbye'?"  
  
"Yeah... oh, shit."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Amy Rose tapped her fingers impatiently on the desk. "Darn! Why did 'Fires of Heat' have to be taken out?"  
  
"Everything okay, Amy?"  
  
"No... Waitaminute. Tails, why are you here?"  
  
"Sonic ditched me. So I came in here." The fox cleared his throat. "So, what's got you troubled?"  
  
Amy sighed. "The book I want is taken out, and the computer won't let me see who took it!"  
  
"It's not suppossed to."  
  
"But Tails! I need that book to complete the riddle!!"  
  
Tails sighed. "Alright, I'll see what I can do." He took out a computer disk and rebooted the computer with the disk in it. "This will allow me to hack into the library database."  
  
"But won't they track it?"  
  
"Not from a computer inside the library. The security system will think it's an employee."  
  
Amy watched dillegently as Tails worked. "How do you know so much about computers?"  
  
"Because I use them to help me design things."  
  
"Oh."  
  
Tappitytappitytap. "There! I think I got it." He typed up a search and recorded the results. "Here, Amy..." he handed her a piece of paper. "Keep this. It has the address of the person who took it out."  
  
"Great. Who was it?" she asked, reaching for it.  
  
Before he could answer, there was an explosion from the east side of the library. Books flew everywhere, and one hit Amy in the head. "Oww... what was that?"  
  
"..."  
  
"Tails?" Amy turned and looked. "Ohh!"  
  
For standing amisdt the fading cloud of smoke...  
  
"Look!" Amy cried. "It's Shadow!"  
  
At that moment, the black hedgehog's ears twitched. He turned and appeared next to Amy, lifting her up by the neck. "Never... call me that... AGAIN!"  
  
Amy struggled to break free of his grasp. He was choking her! "Let... l-let go of me! Please..." she wheezed out.  
  
Nightmare grinned evilly and squeezed her tighter. "Why should I?"  
  
"Let her go!" Tails whacked him with his tails. Nightmare was stunned by the attack and Amy was sent flying across the floor.  
  
Nightmare ignored the pink one and focused on Tails. "So... you dare invoke me, eh? CHAOS SP---"  
  
"Yo SHADOW! What the HELL are you doing!?"  
  
Nightmare stopped dead in his tracks. The yellow bolts that had been partially summoned had diminished. Panting heavily, eyes wide open, he turned slowly and pointed an accusing finger at the blue hedgehog standing atop a pile of rubble. "You..."  
  
Sonic crossed his arms. "What ABOUT me?"  
  
Slowly, Nightmare walked towards Sonic. "I know you from somewhere..."  
  
Sonic rolled his eyes. "Duh! We only saved the world together."  
  
Nightmare stopped. "Wha?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Knuckles and Rouge ran with all they had. "Oh, God..." Rouge panted, "I only hope we're not too late."  
  
There was a sudden explosion from a building across the street. "Rouge, get down!" Knuckles dove over the bat to protect her from any falling debris.  
  
"Knuckles, are you okay!?"  
  
"Uh, Rouge? I think we're too late."  
  
She coughed in the dust that had started flying. "We need to get up higher! Quick" She flung herself onto the closest wall and motioned for Knuckles to follow. After climbing two stories, Knuckles supported himself with one claw and used the other to put his sunglasses on, hoping he could see through the dust. "Do you see anything?" She asked him.  
  
"I see that black hedgehog... and there's someone standing near him, on a pile of bricks."  
  
Rouge slipped on her treasure scope. She gasped. "It's Sonic! Oh Knuckles, I don't think he knows about Nightmare!!"  
  
"Then why don't we be the first to tell him?" He jumped down. "Come on, the dust has settled some!"  
  
She followed, and the two of them ran up behind where Sonic was standing. Inside the library, they heard Nightmare say, "What are you talking about?"  
  
"SONIC!!" Knuckled yelled, hoping he would hear.  
  
He heard. Sonic spun around. "Knux? Rouge? What..."  
  
"Sonic, be careful! That hedgehog isn't what he appears to be!" Rouge cried.  
  
"You mean...?"  
  
"That's NOT Shadow!"  
  
"GRAAAH!" Nightmare was going ballistic. "STOP calling me that!! For the last time, I am Nightmare, and I'm about to become your worst!!" He sped to the top of the pile and stood nose-to-nose with Sonic. "You see this hole?" He held his hand out to display the destrution. "That's only the first part of the bomb. You have five minutes to get your skinny little asses out of here before you're blown to smithereens, along with this rest of this dump."  
  
Amy stood up. "You mean the library?"  
  
Nightmare chuckled softly. "No, not the library... I mean the ENTIRE DAMNED CITY! AND ALL THE FUCKING IDIOTS WHO LIVE IN IT!!" He sped out of the library, knocking over Rouge and Knuckles in the process. "Well, don't just stand there. Tick tock..."  
  
"Wha... ohhh, you're going to pay for this!!" Sonic vowed.  
  
Nightmare smirked. "Ha! Sure... listen, if you want me... you'll have to find me. Chaos Control!!"  
  
"Kuu!" Sonic, Rouge and Knuckles, shielded their eyes.  
  
Sonic thought hard about what Nightmare had said. //You have five minutes...// "C'mon, you guys! We have to do something!!" 


	6. The Meaning of Chaos

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Five: The Meaning of Chaos  
  
  
  
The south side of the city was in chaos. People were rushing to get out, afraid of the apocolypse. Sonic, Rouge, Amy, Tails, and Knuckles all stood pondering. Something had to be done.  
  
"Well, maybe I could find it..." Rouge offered.  
  
"Chances are that it's bound to a wall." Tails sighed.  
  
Knuckles punched his fists together. "Then I can bust it loose by breaking the wall around it."  
  
"But how would we deactivate it?" Amy wondered worriedly.  
  
Another puzzle. Tails snapped his fingers. "Sonic, you rush it to my workshop. I'll meet you there. I think I have something that might be able to stop it."  
  
"But what if it doesn't work?" Sonic questioned of the fox.  
  
"Don't think about failure!" Tails pleaded. "This is our only chance!"  
  
Sonic nodded. "Okay; let's go!" He, Rouge, and Knuckles ran into the library, while Tails started towards his workshop to get the device ready.  
  
"What about me?" Amy asked.  
  
Tails pointed to the train station, which was currently boarding. "Take the first train you can get on, no matter where it goes. Just get out of Station Square. One of us will come get you when it's safe."  
  
"Okay..." Amy broke into a run. "Be careful, Tails. Good luck!" she yelled over her shoulder.  
  
"Thanks..." he said to Amy's fading figure. "We'll need it."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"It's gotta be close... AHA!" Rouge pushed aside a file cabinet to show the bomb. Time left: 3:38.  
  
Knuckles stepped forward and smashed into four points around the bomb, knocking it out of the wall with a large chunk of the wall still attached. Time left: 3:27.  
  
Rouge was worried. "Sonic, you'll never be able to run there in time!"  
  
"I know..." he pulled out a yellow jewel. "That's why I don't intend to."  
  
Rouge gasped. "The fake emerald!"  
  
"Yep! I kept this for a reason. I just didn't know what reason until now." Sonic grinned. "See you on the flipside. Chaos Control!!"   
  
In a flash of yellow and white, Sonic vanished from view and hurried towards the Mystic Ruins. Rouge gripped tightly onto Knuckles. "I hope he'll be alright..."  
  
Knuckles held her close. "Me too, Rouge. Me too..."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Tails went on tinkering when he heard a strange beeping sound. In a flash of golden-white light, Sonic teleported in and landed on the ground. The bomb went flying.  
  
"Ahhhh!!" Tails dove for the explosive, catching it. However, it was quite heavy for the little fox.  
  
"Here, let me help." Sonic jumped up and grabbed on side of the wall chunk. Together they placed it on a black table underneath a type of scanner. "Hurry Tails. We've only got 3:12 left!"  
  
"Alright, alright, hang on..." Tails unscrewed the back cover. "Okay, it's either the blue wire or the red wire that we need to cut."  
  
"You don't know?!"  
  
"Normally it would be the red wire, but Eggman might've reversed it. I'll have to scan it."  
  
"Oh man..." Sonic tapped his foot rapidly. "We've got less than 3 minutes!"  
  
"Plenty of time."  
  
Sonic began pacing. He had never been so nervous.  
  
"Maybe it's the white wire... that scan reads positive..."  
  
*snip*  
  
"AHHH! You just cut a minute off our time!"  
  
"Will you shut up? I'm trying to concentrate!!"  
  
"And I'm trying not to have a nervous breakdown!"  
  
"We're not going to die, Sonic! However, the more you talk, the more I'm distracted from my work!" He set the scanner on again. "Red, or blue..."  
  
"A minute fifteen!"  
  
"Be quiet!"  
  
"What are we going to do?"  
  
"Blue scan... nearly complete..."  
  
"1:05. Tails, are you sure?"  
  
"Come on, come on!!"  
  
"Scan... negative!"  
  
"Well, what is---"  
  
"RED ONE! IT'S THE RED ONE!"  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"You doubt me?!" Tails hunched over the tiny bomb.  
  
*snip*  
  
"Whew." And with 59 seconds left on the clock, Sonic and Tails were able to stop the bomb and take a moment to relax.  
  
There was a shout from outside. "Guys, is everything okay?"  
  
Knuckles. "Come on in, you two," Tails sighed. "It's safe."  
  
Knuckles and Rouge walked inside to see Sonic and Tails sitting on the floor, sweating but smiling. "Well, I see this is a victory for you guys." Rouge smiled.  
  
"Let's celebrate!" Sonic jumped up.  
  
"Any excuse to party, eh Sonic?"  
  
"That's it, Rouge."  
  
Tails tilted his head. "Where are we going to go?"  
  
"Tails, why don't you decide?" Knuckles suggested. "After all, it was your device that stopped the bomb."  
  
"Yeah... but we all helped." He grinned. "If it's okay with everyone else, let's go for pizza!"  
  
"I'm game." Sonic dashed out the door.  
  
"Sonic, wait!"  
  
"What, Tails?"  
  
"We still have to go get Amy!"  
  
".....We HAVE to?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Thank you very much, young miss!"  
  
"Oh, it's no trouble, Mrs. Rodden." Amy waved to the elderly woman as she shut the door. "Wow... whoever would've thought that a completly random train would take me to the house of the person who had borrowed the book I as looking for?" Amy sighed happily at "Fires of Heat".  
  
Getting it wasn't as hard as Amy thought, either. She had walked to the door and explained to the woman that she needed it for research purposes. Mrs. Rodden, as her name turned out to be, agreed to let Amy have the book, since she wasn't using it anyway. Under the condition that Amy take it back to the library for her, Mrs. Rodden would let her take it.  
  
But, Amy thought, it didn't matter how she got it. The point was, she got it, and maybe now she could figure out that puzzle. She opened the first page. Just as she thought, another poem. " 'Creation Occurs Nightly To Renegade Outcasts' Lives'... hm, interesting." She glanced up.  
  
The sun was setting. The trains were operational again, telling Amy that everything was calm again in Station Square. She bought a ticket and headed home.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sonic tapped his foot. He was hungry; why did they have to wait for Amy? It's not like she helped any. "Tails, which train did she get on?"  
  
"I'll tell you again Sonic; I DON'T KNOW. I just told her to take the first train, no matter where it went."  
  
Rouge looked around. "I think she took the train that's pulling in now."  
  
Sonic looked up to where Rouge was pointing. "Where did that was go?"  
  
"Doesn't matter, because she's on it!"  
  
"What? Oh, thank God she's okay." Sonic exhaled. One less thing for him to worry about.  
  
Amy jumped off, looking ever cheerful and peppy. "Hi guys! Tails, I found it!"  
  
"You did?" The excitement in the boy's voice was ever present.  
  
"Uh huh. I found the fourth book!" Amy showed it to him for proof. "The train I was on took me to Sand Hill, which happened to be where Angela Rodden lived, the woman who borrowed my book! Neat, huh?"  
  
"Yeah..." Tails gave it back. "That's great."  
  
"Uh, we were just heading out for some pizza to celebrate." Sonic explained. "We were waiting for you."  
  
"You were? Oh Sonic, you're so nice!" She gathered him up in a hug. "Are we going to Papi's?"  
  
He pulled away and looked down at her. "I wouldn't go anywhere else."  
  
Five happy and hungry faces walked down to steps of the train station, ready for a hearty meal out.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
In the parlour, they were seated Knuckles-Rouge-Amy on one side, with Amy near the window, and Sonic-Tails on the other. Sonic and Knuckles were hoping they could chat more about this Nightmare creature, but before any business could be laid on the table, they had to decide what toppings to lay on the pizza.  
  
"Pepperoni!"  
  
"No, extra cheese!"  
  
"Just lay on the meat for me."  
  
"Supreme, duh! There's no other way to have it!"  
  
"APPLESAUCE!!"  
  
All four turned to stare at Tails. "Applesauce?!"  
  
Tails crossed his arms and glared. "Don't trash it 'till you try it."  
  
"CHEESE!"  
  
"C'mon, feed the carnivore!"  
  
The waiter stood there, calmly holding his pad and pen while the five bickered. "...Perhaps I should give you a few more minutes." He walked away.  
  
"I... want... cheese!" Amy was practically standing.  
  
"Oh c'mon. The pizza is better when it's red, like me! PEPPERONI!" Knuckles shouted.  
  
"Food tastes batter when it's pleasing to the eye." Rouge nodded. "The supreme style is full of color!"  
  
Sonic stared at the wall dreamily. "Just load it with sausage and you'll have one happy hedgehog."  
  
Tails shook his head. "You idiots. I'm telling you, applesauce is the way to go!"  
  
"Sorry, sir fox," the waiter explained from a few tables over, "Applesauce is not on our topping menu."  
  
"That's okay; I brought my own!" He happily pulled out a little jar.  
  
The waiter, whose tag read "Bob", sighed. "May I make a suggestion?"  
  
"YES!" Five voices shouted.  
  
Bob cleared his throat. "Why not order a super-size plain cheese, and take a bowl of your personal toppings from the salad bar?"  
  
They exchanged glances. Yeah, that would work. They placed the order and got up - except for Tails, of course. He had his own topping.  
  
"So Tails, tell me..." Sonic asked as he slid back into the booth, "WHY do you carry around a jar of applesauce?"  
  
Tails shrugged and picked up a spoon. "Even mechanics get the munchies."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After the warm, steamy meal had arrived and was eaten, they began their serious talk: their talk of their worst Nightmare.  
  
"So..." Sonic asked of Knuckles, "You said he was headed for White Island?"  
  
"That's the train I saw him get on."  
  
"Hm. Then I've got to go there somehow, and stop whatever Buttnik might be up to."  
  
"It won't be that easy."  
  
Sonic looked up at Rouge. "What makes you say that?"  
  
Rouge sighed, a serious expression on her face. "There's no way to prove that Robotnik has any play in this. Nightmare - as least from what I could tell - was working by his own will when we fought. There was no mention of a doctor, or an Eggman..."  
  
"You... fought him?"  
  
She nodded. "I thought it was Shadow. He then accused me of being crazy, and did this... attack..."  
  
"Chaos Spear?"  
  
"No... it was something different. Stronger. I... I don't remember what he said..." She held her head.  
  
"Oh..." Sonic knew not to push Rouge any further. "Well thanks. I'll remember that."  
  
"Now what?" Tails wanted to know. "What's our next move going to be?"  
  
"That's easy," Sonic decided. "I'm going after Nightmare. Whether he's with Eggman or not, he's still a threat."  
  
"But Sonic..." Amy whined, "What about my books?"  
  
"What about them?"  
  
"I went through all this trouble to look for them, and I want to study them."  
  
"Fine. You go study; we'll plan our next move."  
  
"But I want to help you guys!!"  
  
Knuckles reached across the table and placed his hand on Sonic's arm. "Let's look at them, Sonic. I'm curious to check them out myself."  
  
Sonic sighed. "Alright. We'll spend a little time over your books, but then our main focus is taking care of Nightmare."  
  
"Yay! Arigato, Sonikku!!"  
  
Sonic could only sigh again. While the nickname "Sonikku" did irk him to no end... for some reason, he suddenly found it kinda cute. Shrugging it off, he stood up to let Tails out. "Let's get going, guys."  
  
They started on the walk towards Amy's apartment. Rouge and Knuckles lagged behind a bit, arm-im-arm, chatting between themselves. "So Knux," Rouge had to wonder, "Why do you want to see Amy's books?"  
  
"I just want to see something."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Well... there are tales of Four Elemental Scrolls existing in this world, and they're suppossed to reveal a guide to the origin of my destiny. You know, why I was chosen to be Guardian, and whatnot."  
  
"I see... and you think that these books might be the Scrolls?"  
  
"It's an exciting thought, but I'm not trying to get my hopes up. I just want to see."  
  
"Hm..."  
  
For a few moments, they walked on in silence, straying a few feet behind the rest of the group. In an attempt to start another conversation, Knuckles cleared his throat and asked, "So Rouge, did you learn anything interesting today?" (Oh my God, what a stupid question!)  
  
Rouge, to his surprise, smiled. "Actually, yes. I learned that there are three meanings to chaos. There's chaos as in the Emeralds, chaos as in panic, and chaos as in ordering pizza with friends." 


	7. The Secret of White Island

[WOO! I FINALLY got the 180th emblem for SA2. Because I am so overjoyed, I am uploading Chapter Six early. Enjoy!!]  
  
  
PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Six: The Secret of White Island  
  
  
  
North and east of Station Square lay a lush, green isle known fondly as White Island. Everyone knew about it, yet no one ever went there, except to stray on the beaches, never venturing past the shore. That was fine with the Chao.  
  
Laying towards the center of the island was a paradise called Chao World, where Chao of all shapes, sizes, ages and colours gathered to live in harmony, while having the occasional friendly race.  
  
The secret of this island lay within Chao World, inside the basic garden. It was a small, pretty place, with a lake, a waterfall, a field to play in, a hill to roll on, two Everlasting Nut Trees, and a spaceous cave to hide in when it rained. This garden was the current home of seven Chao - and a hedgehog.  
  
Shadow the Hedgehog sat underneath the waterfall in front of the cave, letting the water splash on his forehead. Drops of water soaked in his fur; the rest sliding down his face and wetting the back of his hands. He sat with his eyes closed, contemplating to himself.  
  
It had been seven months and 10 days since he had landed in the chao garden after falling from the ARK. His hyper form had lasted until after he entered the earth's atmosphere, but he still suffered many windburns and scars from the fall. He was surprised that many of his wounds had actually healed, but in this garden, anything is possible.  
  
There were seven Chao for a reason. They were all neutral-coloured Chao, but each had a different coloured Chao thing (the little ball above its head) to represent one of the Chaos Emeralds. Shadow had even given them nicknames. The red Chao was Flame; the turquoise Chao was Wave; the green Chao was Emerald; the purple Chao was Violet; the yellow Chao was Sunny; the silver Chao was Shimmer, and the blue Chao was Cobalt. Each had their own personalities and healing properties, but when brought together...  
  
Shadow remembered that day as if he had lived it that morning....  
  
  
  
He was falling, and burning, oh the burn! It seemed to last forever. Suddenly, the falling stopped. As he hit the ground, he felt something round and squishy slap his back before he made impact on harder ground, though it was soft grass, so it could've been worse.  
  
The squishy thing went flying. Shadow weakly opened his eyes and saw the beautiful surroundings, hoping he had gone to Heaven. But an angry blue Chao with a yellow ball told him otherwise. The Chao shouted something to him in an unintelligible language and kicked his side.   
  
As light as the kick was, it still caused an unbearable amount of pain to the weakened Shadow. The Chao gasped in shock, not knowing that Shadow had been injured. She turned her head and shouted something in her language again, and before Shadow could blink, he was surrounded by seven Chao, including the one he had fallen on.  
  
They started to chant. The Chao things atop their heads began to turn white. They glowed brightly and their chanting grew louder. Shadow had to close his eyes; it was too bright! He felt a strange warmth envelope him, and very quickly he relaxed.  
  
The next morning he awoke fully healed.  
  
  
  
The Chao healed him. Their chaos properties healed him. And it had been seven months and ten days since it happened.  
  
At times Shadow wished they didn't heal him, that they had left him for dead; or better yet, that he could've landed somewhere where nothing could find him. More than anthing he just wanted to die. But he had been cursed with the gift of immortality. Something he always found ironic. "It's ironic how I can live forever, and I just want to die; yet there are so many mortals who would do anything to have my gift."  
  
But when he thought about it, life in the Chao garden was kinda like being dead. No one knew that he was still alive, and life in the garden was very peaceful. He had everything he could want: the Chao kept him company; in fact Sunny, his complete Chao opposite, was his best friend. The two nut trees provided food, and the cave kept them warm on rainy nights.  
  
Sometimes, however, with seven Chao and a hedgehog, two trees didn't seem to be enough. There were seeds scattered all over White Island, but the Chao didn't like to leave their gardens unless it was absolutely necessary. It was up to Shadow to collect the seeds for them. On a good day he could find about 10 seeds.  
  
He hoped today would be a good day, because Sunny interrupted his train of thought to show him the seed basket was almost empty. She squeaked and dragged him inside the cave, pointing frantically.  
  
He chuckled. "Okay, okay... get me my sack, and I'll get right on it!"  
  
Flame walked to the other side of the cave and picked up a small reddish-orange bag. It had one carry strap, which Shadow flung over his shoulder. The bag sat on his opposite hip. He used this sack to carry the seeds. He made sure it was empty. "Hey look!" He held out his hand to Sunny. "I found two more."  
  
She squeaked at him.  
  
He sighed. "I can't win with you, can I?"  
  
She giggled, shook her head, and raised her arms.  
  
He picked her up and gave her a quick cuddle. "Aww... I love you too, but I really got to get moving if I want to be back before nightfall." He set her down and walked out of the cave. Grabbing a nut to munch on as a snack, he waved to the rest of the Chao and left.  
  
The Chao became nervous whenever Shadow left the garden. At first they thought he may never come back. Now their fear was that someone may try to attack them. See, getting the seeds was something the Chao asked him to do. Protecting them was Shadow's own choice. While he didn't care for living, the Chao did what they could to save him from death, plus they cared for him and tended to his wounds. In turn for their care, he became their protectorate. While no evil forces had ever tried to come into Chao World, in case they did try, Shadow vowed to be there.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Oh, here's a good one."  
  
Shadow picked up another seed and put in his his sack. "That's four already. Not a bad haul so far." He looked around for more.  
  
After searching for another half-hour with no luck, Shadow sat down on a log. He usually found plenty of seeds in this area. He looked around and noticed a bush. On the other side of that bush was an area he had never been in before. And luck have it, there were dozens of seeds scattered around! "How perfect." He made his way through the brush and into a new area.  
  
There were many many trees, as there were all around the island. But here, there was a small patch of woods without trees, and a pond. Shadow took in the area, smelling the sweet air, and then went back to his work of gathering food for his friends.  
  
*snap*  
  
Shadow froze. A twig snapped. He looked at his feet. It wasn't him. Someone else was in the forest, right near where he was standing. He kept his breathing slow, so as not to be discovered. He head the sound of laughing, and talk of revenge. (Strange...) Shadow thought, (That person sounds a lot like me.)  
  
Shadow kept on his guard, looking around for signs of another being. There was another snap, but it was in the distance. Shadow exhaled and went back to picking up seeds.  
  
He found a Tasty Seed right near the bush. "Great. The Chao love these." As he reached over to pick it up, he looked throught the branches of the bush and noticed something moving. A closer peer and he was able to see that it was coming closer.  
  
Shadow bit his lip. He had to do something. He had to hide. (Oh shit, oh shit... what do I do?) Shadow looked around. "Aha!" He knew what to do.  
  
He jumped in the pond.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Heh heh heh heh... those idiots will learn to mess with me."  
  
*splash*  
  
Nightmare stopped in his tracks. "What was that?" He ran through a bush and noticed harsh ripples on the pond. He leaned over to see in. "Hmm.... nothing down there but my reflection..." He frowned. "Are my cheeks that big?" He stood up and headed back to his home, prodding his face. "Maybe I should lay off the cheeze puffs...."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Shadow held his breath as he looked up. He tried not to gasp when he looked at the person outside the pond. He looked like him!! Shadow thought quickly and decided to use this to his advantage, and mimicked the movements of the person outside the pond. Then the other being walked away.  
  
Slowly, very slowly, Shadow resurfaced, dumbfounded. "He... he looked just like me!! Oh well. That made pretending to be his reflection easy." He climbed out of the pond carefully, so as not to make a sound. Up ahead, on a very small path, the other black hedgehog was walking, poking his cheek. Shadow had to grin. Hey, he had to hold his breath somehow...  
  
Shadow was about to follow this other hedgehog when he remembered about the Chao. Hedgehog, Chao, hedgehog, Chao... well, he'd follow until he knew where this imposter was going. Slowly, Shadow crept along behind his "twin", ducking behind from tree to bush and back again, until the hedgehog stopped.  
  
He looked around to make sure no one was watching. Then he walked to a tree - a very BIG tree - and pulled on a vine. Part of the bark slid back, revealing a staircase that went underground. The hedgehog walked inside and pulled on another vine, dissapearing behind the bark-door that slid back into place.  
  
This was all very intruguing to Shadow. He walked around the tree, looking for a special marking other than it's immense size. He found part of the bark carved off, into the shape of a chicken egg. "No..."  
  
He was back.  
  
He was here.  
  
"Eggman..."  
  
Why here?  
  
Why now?  
  
"He's returned..." Shadow felt the sack of seeds resting on his hip.  
  
A gasp.  
  
"The Chao!"  
  
He's too close.  
  
He might find them!  
  
Then what?  
  
"No... oh my God, no!!" Shadow turned and ran back the way he came. What might Eggman want with the Chao, if anything at all? Whether he was going to use them or not, he still had a vow to keep. Shadow hurried his way back to Chao World, hoping wishing praying, that they would be alright when he returned. 


	8. Reunited

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Seven: Reunited  
  
  
  
Sonic sighed. They had been looking over the books for an hour and still hadn't gotten anywhere. "What is the point of this, again?"  
  
"We're just taking care of my curiosity." Amy nodded matter-of-factly.  
  
Rouge set the books up in a row. "Maybe we're going about this the wrong way. The poems mean something. We just have to put them in the right order."  
  
"But what comes in fours?" Knuckles wondered aloud. "Weeks, seasons, meals..."  
  
The mention of seasons reminded Amy of a poem she learned when she was little. "Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. If you can say them, you know them all..." she spoke without thinking.  
  
Silence. They all looked at Amy.  
  
"....Whaaaat?!" She asked defensively.  
  
"Amy..." Sonic's voice was soft, "What did you just say?"  
  
She looked at the ground and gave a tiny grin. "It's just a little poem I was taught in kindergarten..."  
  
"Winter spring summer fall..." Sonic said to himself. "That's it! Amy, you're a genius!" He gave the girl a quick hug. Amy blushed.  
  
Rouge snapped her fingers. "I got an idea. Maybe we could try matching up the elements in the books to the seasons! For example, winter might be water." She put "Waters of Light" at the edge of the table.  
  
Amy giggled, catching on. "Spring is the time when everything is pretty in the world, so it must be earth!" She picked up "Earth of Sound" and set it next to the water book.  
  
" 'Fires of Heat', eh?" Knuckles smirked. "That can only be summer."  
  
Tails picked up the last book. "Which means 'Winds of Time' must represent fall."  
  
Sonic picked up a small pile of paper that had each poem written on it. "Okay, so if that IS the order the books go in, the first-page poems would read like this:  
  
'Cursing Harm At Other Spirits  
Embarks Many Evil Realms At Life's Death Sentences.  
Creation Occurs Nightly To Renegade Outcasts' Lives,  
Never Imagining Greater Hurt Than Marring A Realm Eternal' "  
  
Sonic frowned. "I don't get it."  
  
"Let me see." Knuckles took the paper. "It takes a little analyzing. The first two sentrences mean that hurting another will cause hurt to yourself."  
  
"In other words, what goes around, comes around?"  
  
"Something like that. The third line... 'Outcasts' is plural, meaning there is more than one. These outcasts have... constant creation on their lives... perhaps they learn nightly. Creation of ideas. But they never conjure thoughts of harming anything greater than them; the 'Realm Eternal'."  
  
Sonic nodded. "Two or more creative 'outcasts' that would never even DREAM of hurting something greater than them, because they would get hurt in return. Okay..."  
  
"But there's more to it than that." Rouge picked up a pencil. "The sentences are capitalized, like they mean something." She wrote out each line... " 'Chaos... Emeralds... Con---" She stopped.  
  
"What?" Knuckles asked. "What is it?"  
  
Rouge scrawled out the last bit, slamming the paper into the center of the table for all to see. She drew her hand back.  
  
The other four leaned over and read in her words. At that same time, they all cried, "CHAOS EMERALDS CONTROL NIGHTMARE!"  
  
The books began to glow.  
  
The icons on the back shimmered, and a heart appeared in the center of them. Of course, the gang didn't see this until the glow subsided, and a fifth book landed on the table.  
  
" 'Universe of Life'..." Rouge read aloud with wonder. "Oh wow..."  
  
"Open it, open it!" Tails cried, full of excitement.  
  
She did. "It's another poem."  
  
Everyone groaned.  
  
"This one is different... it rhymes."  
  
Everyone stared at her. "What are you waiting for?" Knuckles prodded. "Go on."  
  
"Oh, o-okay." Rouge cleared her throat.  
  
"After a joyous summer sun  
And doleful evening's rain,  
8 souls who aren't the least alike  
Will meet up once again.  
  
"Two of the 8, they will first meet  
By thinking 'He is me!'  
They will be identicle only  
As far as eyes can see.  
  
"3 and 4 will form a love  
Of one Expected pair.  
Their faith for one another will teach  
Another one to care.  
  
"This 'other one' makes number 5  
Who eats and drinks his speed.  
No matter how he runs from six,  
He'll always want their need.  
  
"The 6th of 8 is pure of heart  
And never takes a fall.  
They'll be the first - and the last  
To know about it all.  
  
"Now 7 and 8 see much alike  
But they are enemies.  
They might be friends, if only they  
Could see what the other sees.  
  
"A soul and a soul, this 1-8  
Must once again unite  
To pool together Chaos stregth  
To win the final fight."  
  
Sonic raised his eyebrows. "....Woah..."  
  
Rouge skimmed the poem over again. "D... do you think this involves us?"  
  
Knuckles cracked his knuckles. "More analyzing?"  
  
"It's late, guys..." Amy noticed. "Why don't we all go to bed and think it over in the morning?"  
  
Four other voices agreed. "Okay."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was dark.  
  
Late, too.  
  
Shadow groaned, sitting up. He didn't know what time it was, nor did he really care. He would've liked to know why something woke him up in the middle of the night. (Maybe I'm needed awake for something...) Whatever the reason, he knew he wouldn't get back to sleep.  
  
He crept out of the cave. A north wind blew, making it seem rather cool in the garden. Shadow held his arms, unprepared for the chill of the night. "I'm not going to be going back to sleep anytime soon..." he murmured to himself. "Maybe I should walk; warm up my muscles a bit."  
  
He made his way down from the rocks and leapt over the pool, using a Homing Attack to get to the exit faster. He turned and looked at the cave one last time before smiling and leaving. "They'll be fine for a little while. I won't be gone long."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Chaos Emeralds Control Nightmare..."  
  
Sonic kept repeating this over and over to himself as he lay on the floor of Amy Rose's apartment. By the time they had finished with the book, it was close to 10, and Amy invited them all to spend the night in her apartment. Amy and Rouge took their slumber in the bedroom, Knuckles sat in a beige recliner, Tails was curled up in a purple velvet armchair, and Sonic had a white leather couch. He was on the floor because he was trying out different positions, hoping to fall into Sleep.  
  
Yet Sleep never came.  
  
The true meaning of the acronym poems.... could it be Nightmare's weakness? But what can be used to stop Chaos power?  
  
Sonic didn't know.  
  
And when Sonic doesn't know, Sonic finds out.   
  
He rose to his feet and quietly crept out the door, trying not to wake anyone. A quick sprint to the train station. The White Island train wasn't running. (That's okay,) Sonic decided. (If the train isn't running, I am.) He made his way over to the appropriate track and became the Sonic Express.  
  
Faster and faster, thorough this tunnel, over this track, within minutes he was at the boarding dock. The beach was deserted. A few forgotten toys and blankets got washed up by the high tide, joining the sea forever. Sonic watched the water flow over the tips of his sneakers. Why WAS the tide so high, anyway?  
  
Sonic look to the sky. A full moon... well, as full as the moon could get from being blown to pieces 7 months ago. Half-gone or not, it still shown down brilliant light, enough to give Sonic the edge he needed to get into the forest. Eggman's base was somehere here.  
  
//There's no way to prove that Robotnik has any play in this.//  
  
Sonic remembered Rouge's words from the night before. True, there was no proof, but history repeats itself, and if a black hedgehog was siding with Eggman before, who's to say it wouldn't happen again?  
  
He stopped for a rest on a medium-sized clearing, with two rivers flowing on either side of it. It reminded Sonic greatly of the battlefield where he and Shadow first fought. Ah, memories...  
  
*rustle rustle*  
  
Sonic's ears pricked.  
  
*rustle snap bamp*  
  
The sounds of a bush moving, a twig snapping, and feet landing.  
  
*step step*  
  
"Who's there?"  
  
Silence. The moon gave enough light to enable Sonic to make out the figure standing at the other edge of the clearing to be...   
  
Could it be? Yes, it was! He had found Nightmare! "YOU!"  
  
The black hedgehog turned and mumbled something to himself. "Sonic... of all places..."  
  
Sonic pointed an accusing finger at the black form. "I've found you... FAKER!"  
  
"Faker?!" Then the hedgehog stopped and placed a hand to his chin in thought. "Waitaminute, haven't I been through this before?"  
  
Sonic did a Homing Attack. "You won't get away now!"  
  
The hedgehog dodged. "What are you talking about, Sonic?"  
  
"You know what I'm--- wait... how do you know my name?"  
  
"Duh." He crossed his arms. "We only saved the world together."  
  
Sonic felt his jaw drop. "....Shadow?"  
  
Two nods.  
  
Time stood still. For a few moments, Sonic felt nothing. Emptiness filled him, momentarily obscuring his vision. What was happening? Was this real? Shadow was alive? Shadow was here? Now? Standing 6 feet away from him!?  
  
A smile spread across the blue hedgehog's face as he broke into a run. "Shadow!!"  
  
Shadow grinned back and met his friend in an embrace. "Oh, it's so good to see you again, Sonic!"  
  
"You're alive... I can hardly believe it!" Sonic pulled back and gripped Shadow by the shoulders. "Where have you been all this time? How have you survived?"  
  
Shadow hesitated to answer. "...I've... been living... in a Chao garden..."  
  
Sonic snickered. "A Chao garden?" He burst out laughing.  
  
Shadow glared. "That's not funny!!"  
  
"Sorry, sorry...." Sonic calmed down. "It's just the thought of you, Mr. tough-guy Ultimate Life Form, living in a Chao garden... it's kinda funny."  
  
"Yeah, maybe..."  
  
A silence between them. Sonic frowned. He hated silences like these. But what do you say to a guy who was thought to be dead? "Shadow... why have you been hiding out? We all miss you."  
  
Shadow looked away, a look of what appeared to be shame crossing his face. "I-I like being dead."  
  
"But... you're alive."  
  
"Nobody knows that... except you, that is." Shadow grabbed Sonic by the shoulders. "Sonic, please. Don't tell anyone that I'm here."  
  
"..."  
  
"Please! Sonic..."  
  
"...but why?" Sonic asked, a calm look on his face. "Why do you want everyone to think you died?"  
  
Shadow sighed. "It's kinda difficult to explain.... all I want is to die, to get my life over with. I've fulfilled my promise to Maria, but I still don't get to be with her..." he blinked back tears.  
  
Sonic sat still. "You really cared about her, huh?"  
  
He sniffed and nodded, his voice quavering. "She was like a sister to me... my only real friend... oh Sonic!!" he wailed, collapsing into the blue hedgehog's arms, "You don't know what it's like to be alone..."  
  
He sobbed deeply. Sonic felt so helpless. What should he do? (Comfort him, you idiot!) "Shh... it's all over, Shadow..." He spoke with a soft, gentle tone. "We're your friends now. Me, and the others... come with us Shadow. Then you won't be alone."  
  
The tears stopped falling. The sobs dimished quietly. Shadow looked up into Sonic's emerald eyes, reading nothing but sincerity as he stared into his soul. Maybe he should go with them. Maybe...  
  
He shook his head and stood up. "No. I can't. The... the Chao need me."  
  
"Say that again?"  
  
Shadow gazed at the half-moon. "They saved me, even though I didn't want to be saved. But they took care of me, after the fall. They are my friends, and I am at peace in the garden. I want to keep that peace." He looked at Sonic. "It's my job to protect them."  
  
"Job?"  
  
"Well... okay, it's something I want to do. Even still... I need to be there should something happen."  
  
"Ah..."  
  
"They're really amazing creatures, Sonic. They're children of the emeralds, and can use Chaos power at will, even if they don't have an emerald! Something that even I can't do..."  
  
Chaos... power... Ah! Sonic slapped his forehead. "Oh jeeze, I forgot!"  
  
"What?"  
  
"The reason I came here was to investigate more on this creature called Nightmare. He looks---"  
  
"Exactly like me."  
  
"....how did you know?"  
  
"I saw him, while I was out gathering seeds for the Chao." Shadow closed his eyes.  
  
"Did you see where he went?"  
  
He opened his eyes. "Actually, yes. I mean, if you saw someone who could be your twin, wouldn't you be curious? Anyway, I watched him go down this path... follow me."  
  
Under the light of the half-moon and the stars, Shadow was able to find the path that took him to the "EggTree". "Look here... if you see, this tree is MUCH bigger than most of the others in the forest. And if you look here..." Shadow pointed, "There's an egg-shaped mark carved into the bark, just at our eye-level."  
  
"...I can't make it out."  
  
"I know, the lighting is poor. But it's there, trust me."  
  
"Okay..."  
  
"I saw Nightmare walk in here. He pulled on this vine..." Shadow pointed it out, "...and a door in the bark slid open. There's a vine inside you use to shut it again."  
  
"Seems easy enough."  
  
"Well, that's Eggman for ya'," Shadow said, shrugging.  
  
Right then, a high-pitched cry echoed through the forest. It was faint, but the hedgehogs were still able to pick up the sound.  
  
"What's that noise?"  
  
Shadow sighed. "It's Sunny. She knows I'm gone."  
  
"She?" Sonic grinned mischeiveously. "C'mon, details, pal!"  
  
"She's a CHAO, Sonic!"  
  
"....oh."  
  
Shadow smiled. "And she's really taken a liking to me. She has this fear that when I leave the garden, I'll never be coming back."  
  
"I see."  
  
"I'd better get going..." Shadow decided as he heard the cry again. "It was nice seeing you again, Sonic."  
  
"Yeah... good luck, Shadow."  
  
He nodded and sped away.  
  
Sonic sped away as well, but he stopped once he arrived at the station. He walked home on the tracks, thinking. White Island has a much bigger secret then Eggman's hidden base; it holds the hidden hedgehog. But... he did promise he wouldn't tell. Oh, but it would be such a hard secret to keep! He kept thinking about as he made his way back into Amy's apartment.  
  
Sonic slipped off his shoes and flopped on the couch. Maybe he needed to sleep on it... yeah, that might help. He stretched and yawned, settling into the soft leather sofa.  
  
And for Sonic, at 3:25 AM, Sleep came. 


	9. Infiltration

[Heh heh, you know what Nara? I wasn't even thinking of your Chao when I gave Sunny her name. Oh well, Great minds think alike, no? XD]  
  
  
PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Eight: Infiltration  
  
  
  
Sonic awoke the next morning at 7:30 AM to a rather irritating sound - Amy's voice.  
  
" 'Morning, Sonikku!"  
  
"Ngh." He rolled over and stuck his head between the cushions.  
  
Amy giggled. "Silly Sonic.... that's not the way to breakfast."   
  
"brkfsst?" he mumbled through the cushions. Now that was an appealing thought. He rolled over half-way. "What are we having?"  
  
"I'm making blueberry, chocolate chip, and plain pancakes; bacon, and eggs. Knuckles is going to help me."  
  
Sonic sat up, staring at the red echidna in shock. "Knuckles.... you can cook?"  
  
He reached for an apron and nodded. "Well, when you live by yourself for most of your life, you learn a thing or two about food preparation."  
  
"If you say so." Sonic yawned and stretched, hoping a nice, hot, homecooked breakfast would make up for only getting three hours of sleep.  
  
Rouge came out of Amy's bedroom, neatly washed and dressed. "Well, that was certainly an interesting night."  
  
"What made it interesting?" Sonic asked, grinning.  
  
Rouge smacked him. "You perv."  
  
"Oww..." Man, she hit hard. "That wasn't necessary. I knew what you meant."  
  
She stuck out her tounge at him.  
  
"That's enough, children," Knuckles scolded them. "If you're going to fight, at least make yourself useful and give us a hand."  
  
Rouge pouted. "But I can't cook very well. Besides, I want to learn more about that poem."  
  
Sonic crossed his arms and looked away, muttering under his breath. "And I want to go after Nightmare, but you don't hear ME complaining about it..."  
  
"What was that!?" She asked crossly.  
  
"Nothing, nothing!" Sonic fell on his back. "I'm just bored, that's all."  
  
Amy pulled Sonic up from the couch. "Bored, huh? I can fix that. You can help me with the bacon!"  
  
"No, Amy. No..." he pulled away. "I'm not cooking."  
  
"B...but..."  
  
"No, and that's final." He sighed. "I just want to go after Nightmare, now that I know where he is." Sonic gasped and covered his mouth. (Oh crap. Did I just say that out loud?)  
  
Amy stopped pouting, Rouge stopped reading, Knuckles stopped stirring, and Tails... well, Tails was still asleep. The other three stared at him. "And..." Rouge began to say, "How may I ask, do you know where Nightmare is?"  
  
Sonic felt his ears droop as he slunk into the white leather sofa. "I, uh... well... I couldn't sleep last night, so... so I went for a walk, yeah, and... I kinda... ended up at White Island...."  
  
"You went to White Island alone?"  
  
"...uh huh..."  
  
"But... why?" Knuckles asked. "Why didn't you wait for us?"  
  
"Because..." Sonic sighed. " 'Chaos Emeralds Control Nightmare' ... I couldn't get that out of my head. I kept wondering about what it meant. At two in the morning, I was still thinking about it. So I left. I had to know. If the Emeralds control him, could that be a weakness? I had to know."  
  
"And you found him?"  
  
"Not him, exactly. Just Eggman's new base."  
  
"So..." Rouge frowned, "Eggman is involved..."  
  
"Apparantly, yes. But I don't know how or why."  
  
"Hmm..."  
  
Tension of silence once again arose from the air around them. The only visible sounds were the sizzling of the food, and Tails' soft snoring.  
  
The sizzling stopped. "Grub's up!" Knuckles cried happily. "Come and get it!"  
  
"Alright!" Sonic said, jumping up. "I could use some... woah!" He tripped and fell flat on his face. "Oooof!"  
  
Knuckles didn't see him until his foot jammed into Sonic's side and he went flying. "Woooooahhhh!" The plate of pancakes flew right into the face of an unsuspecting Rouge.  
  
"AaaaaAHHHHHH! IT'S HOT!!" Rouge yanked the flat disks off of her face and flung them back towards whence they came.  
  
Sonic stood up. "Sorry, Knuc---" *splat* "Hey!"  
  
Rouge gathered up some more of the pancake on her face. "Sorry Sonic, I was aiming at... KNUCKLES!" she flung what she had in her hand and landed a bull's eye.  
  
Knuckles grabbed some of the food off of Sonic. "Well, as you know Rouge, what goes around... comes around!"  
  
Rouge ducked, and the mess landed on the chair where Tails was sleeping. A small hunk of it landed on his nose. He rubbed at his nose, moaned and rolled over.  
  
No one noticed, however. Right now it seemed their main priority was gunking up the others with pancakes.   
  
Amy walked out with a plate of bacon and poached eggs.... and was immediatly pelted with a blueberry pancake. "Hey! What is going on out here?!"  
  
Knuckles turned around and grinned. "Fresh ammunition... all right!"  
  
Amy widened her eyes and held the plate back. "Nuh-uh! I went through a lot of trouble to make these, and if you're not going to eat them, I will!" She marched to the table and began shoveling the bacon, practially swallowing it whole.  
  
Knuckles grinned. "Fine, I still have more pancake batter!"  
  
"I THINK NOT!" Amy flung the plate at Knuckles' head. "Don't you have any respect for my clean house?"  
  
"Well..." Sonic poked at a pancake sitting on the floor. "It's not clean anymore."  
  
Rouge hung her head. "Sorry Amy. I kinda got carried away in the fun. I'll give you a hand in the cleanup."  
  
"Thanks, Rouge. But eat first."  
  
They sat down at the table. Tails, who was still all curled up, finally opened his eyes to the morning and stretched out the last of his sleep. He yawned and arose, walking to the kitchen. "Morning guys. Did I miss anything interesting?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"...?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Oh my... is this it?"  
  
"Is what it, Doctor?"  
  
"HaHA, I think I may have figured it out!"  
  
"Figured out what? Tell me tell me!" Nightmare begged.  
  
Dr. Ivo Robotnik quietly gasped in awe to himself. "The key to your strength. And how to improve it."  
  
"...Improve...?"  
  
"I think I have found a way to increase your powers. Make you stronger!"  
  
"Strong...er...?" Nightmare felt the excitement increasing.  
  
"Yessss..." Eggman hissed dangerously.  
  
"I can be stronger... but, what will I be able to to that I can't already do now?"  
  
"Oh, plenty more, my Nightmare. Plenty more."  
  
"Plenty more..." Oh, how appealing that sounded to Nightmare's ears. "Like... how plenty more?" He dared to ask.  
  
"With the push of a button, I can make you ten times more powerful than you are now. You'll be stronger, faster, and more cunning."  
  
Nightmare gasped. "You would... do that for me?"  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Wow..." (And he asks nothing in return...) "Is there anything I could do for you?"  
  
"Just be yourself. Live your dreams, and accomplish them... accomplish all that I could not."  
  
"What?"  
  
Eggman sighed. "You see, the dreams I have had seemed to have been embedded in you. My dreams are your dreams as well."  
  
"I see... uhm, what was your biggest dream?"  
  
"Conquering the world." Eggman answered without skipping a beat.  
  
"Mine too..." Nightmare said with a bit of wonder. "Perhaps..." he started.  
  
"Yes, Nightmare?"  
  
The ebony hedgehog was lost in thought. "Perhaps... with my power, and your resources... we can do it as a team, and rule the earth together. Then we'd BOTH have a legacy!"  
  
In the back of his mind, Eggman was celebrating. This is just how he wanted it, Nightmare WILLING to help him. The patience was well worth it. "I like the way you think, Nightmare."  
  
He beamed. "Thank you!" His expression fell curious. "So... what are you going to do to me, anyway? That will make me stronger?"  
  
"Come with me."  
  
Back to the elevator, back down to the deepest levels of Eggman hidden lair, but not the lab. To a storage room, where a tubular capsule lay in front of a console. The console was covered by a black sheet.  
  
"Nightmare, welcome to your birthing quadrants."  
  
He looked around in wonder. "I was... born here?"  
  
"Yes. With the help... of these!" With a swift hand, Eggman uncovered the console, revealing a flat surface with seven jewels embedded in them, each of a different colour; red, turquiose, green, purple, yellow, silver, and blue.  
  
"Those are... the Chaos Emeralds!" Nightmare could hardly believe it. The most powerful stones in the world... and they were his bearers?  
  
"Yes. You see, Nightmare, your strength comes from being born with the Emeralds as a life source. They grant you the speed, brains, and power you have. But there was something I did not anticipate from you."  
  
Eggman opened a digital file and used it to project images onto a far wall.  
  
"That is a picture of Sonic the Hedgehog, my ultimate nemesis."  
  
Nightmare growled. "Oh, so *that's* what they call the blue idiot..."  
  
"Yes, anyway..." he cleared his throat. "Sonic has the ability to harness the power of the Chaos Emeralds, to turn into this... *click* Super Sonic."  
  
Nightmare stared at the gold image in awe. Super Sonic... ruby eyes, a golden sheen, graceful positioning... such a beautiful creature. Too bad he must be destroyed. "He uses Chaos Emeralds to change?"  
  
"Mmm-hmm."  
  
"But... then that would mean I'm in a more powerful form, right?"  
  
"That's the thing I did not anticipate. You are in your normal form, but you have the strength of a super form. If you used the Emeralds again, then you would be in your true super form, but you would be ten times as powerful."  
  
Nightmare nodded, catching on to what the Doctor was saying. "And this... this is how I can build my legacy! Oh Doctor, you're a genuis!"  
  
"Aren't I?" Eggman laughed. "So, what's the verdict? Will you give it a try?"  
  
"Will I ever!" Nightmare had that child-like tone in his voice again. He ran up to the console. "Hit me, Doc!"  
  
"Not so fast." Eggman walked over to him. "That's the catch. It will take some time to get the Emeralds ready."  
  
"How much time?"  
  
"Oh, a few hours at best."  
  
"Darn." Oh, the dissapointment. Nightmare sighed. "What can I do until then... I know! I'll head back to Station Square and laugh at all the people I'm going to destroy!"  
  
Eggman chuckled. (That's my boy!) "Alright, go on then. Give me three hours at the least; five at most."  
  
"Alright; I'm gone." Nightmare sped out the door.  
  
(Perfect... this is all so perfect...) Eggman had to think to himself. "Nightmare is about to reach his peak, and he's siding with me, all at his own will! By now, his emotional factors would've set. I have no fear of him turning on me, whether or not Shadow's history comes up."   
  
Eggman turned and walked to the Emerald console. "Well, enough of that; there's work to be done!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
(Shoes on, laces tied... yeah.) "Alright gang!" Sonic yelled. "Let's hit the road!"  
  
"WAAAIIIIT!!" Amy cried. "What about me?"  
  
"...What about you?"  
  
"You have to wait for me!"  
  
Sonic sighed. Not this again... "Amy, you can't come. It's much too dangerous."  
  
"But... oh, please Sonic! You have to let me come!"  
  
"...I HAVE to?"  
  
"Yes! I was nice enough to let you stay here last night AND cook you breakfast, which you used to gunk up my living room! On top of that, it was my books that led you to Nightmare's secret."  
  
Sonic sighed again, heavier this time. She had a point. "Alright, but stay behind me, okay?"  
  
"Okay!"  
  
"Good. Let's try this again." Sonic took a breath. "Alright gang! Let's hit the road!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A train trip and a short walk later, Sonic and the crew had made their way to the largest tree. Sonic looked for the eye-level egg-shaped mark, and sure enough, it was there. (Shadow was right... it is a lot easier to see in the daytime.)  
  
"Wow, Sonic..." Tails commented, "You sure got us here fast."  
  
"Yeah," Rouge added. "How did you know where it was?"  
  
"I told you; I couldn't sleep last night."  
  
"Yes, but... how did you manage to find it in the dark?"  
  
"A walking miracle..." Sonic said softly to himself.  
  
"What was that?"  
  
"Uhm... I was walking, and by miracle I found it!" Sonic walked over to the vine, biting his tongue. Oh, how he itched to tell them of Shadow's survival! But, he did make promise to a friend, and the last thing Sonic would ever do is go back on his word, expecially to a trusted friend like Shadow.  
  
Just like Shadow said, the pulling of the vine caused a piece of the bark to slide to the side, creating a passageway. Sonic walked in and stood by the other vine, waiting for the others to follow him in. After about 10 seconds, he was still by himself, so he peered outside to see the other four staring at him. "Whaaaat?!"  
  
Rouge scratched her head. "Sonic... maybe walking around in the dark would've let you find the base, but how did you know how to get inside?"  
  
"Oh, just my natural hedgehog instinct," he lied.  
  
Amy frowned. "But I'm a hedghog and I didn---mmmph rmmph rumph."  
  
Sonic clasped a hand over her mouth. "Nevermind how I know; the point is, we're in."  
  
"I guess..." Rouge shrugged it off and followed Sonic and Amy down the stairwell.   
  
Knuckles shook his head and sighed at the thought of what lay at the bottom. "How do I get myself into these things?!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A lone figure watched from a tree above Sonic and his companions, making notes of their movements and what they were saying. "I think Sonic is starting to rub off on me..."   
  
Shadow the Hedgehog leapt down from his perch on the tree branch, his fall being broken by a bush. He hopped to his feet and stood, staring at the door. "My curiosity is raging... plus I'd like to see if Eggman is using Nightmare, like he used me..."  
  
Shadow looked to the ground as a wave of sadness washed over him. Memories of the ARK incident flooded his mind, reminding him of the fear, the pain, the adventure he had gone through. Images flashed through his eyes: Gerald bound in chains, Amy smiling innocently, Sonic and Knuckles at the Emerald altar, Super Sonic reaching for out for his arm, Maria's angelic face as he fell to the earth...  
  
"Oh Maria..."  
  
Shadow closed his eyes and clutched his hands to the left side of his chest. His heart pounded wildly. Strange, he thought. He had been in much more danger than a little snooping, and yet, he had never felt so scared.  
  
He raised his right hand to the sky. "Maria, I beg of you.... help me. Give me the strength to get through this." He exhaled deeply, opened his eyes, and firmly tugged on the vine that would grant him access inside.  
  
Little did this observer know, that he was ALSO being watched, by a little blue spy with a yellow top...  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nightmare ran thought the forest, a huge smile on his face. It was now four in the afternoon, and it had been three hours since the Doctor had told him to go off alone for a while. "I have to see if he's ready!"   
  
He ran faster, but suddenly tripped on something soft. He saw something light blue out of the corner of his eye before his face made contact with the dirt. "OOOOOOOFFF!" Grumbling, he got up again, and retained the speed he had reached before he fell, smiling. "Nothing will be able to get me down today."  
  
He sped down the stairs, whizzing by the traps with ease. (Odd... some of these traps look like they've been tripped. Oh well.) He started humming a light tune as he sped by all the familiar props. (The painting of the Doctor, the first blueprint he drew, the license plate of the first car be blew up, a blue hedgehog, a red echidna---)   
  
He skidded to a halt.  
  
(Waitaminute. The Doctor doesn't have THOSE on display....)  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Nightmare!" Sonic yelled.  
  
The ebony hedgehog sneered. "That's my name, don't wear it out." He plowed through the group.  
  
"Hey!" Sonic held out his arm. "I'm not done with you yet!!"  
  
"No..." Nightmare hissed thoughtfully, "But in a few minutes, I'll be done with you!" He charged through Sonic's grasp, making his way down the vast hallway full of Eggman's sentimental artifacts.   
  
"Wha--- HEY!" Sonic dashed after him. "I'm not letting you get away this time, Nightmare!" Sonic cried against the wind as he rounded the corner into another room. "You're going..." Sonic stopped and stared. "...down?"  
  
An evil laughter echoed throughout the room. "That's what you think, hedgehog! Ah hahahahahahaHAHAHA!" Eggman banged his fist against a red button, and a large black mechanical device at the opposite end of the room began to move. "Nightmare, now! You know what to do!"  
  
"Aye aye, Doctor Robotnik!" Nightmare leapt into the middle of of the mayhem, hardly visible against the dark backdrop save for his red stripes.  
  
By this time, Amy, Tails, Rouge, and Knuckles had entered the room, but they had heard everything out in the halls. Rouge stepped forward. "Nightmare, listen to me! Eggman is trying to use you to get what he wants!"  
  
Nightmare scowled at her. "Oh, you again! Feh, I don't believe one word."  
  
"But you must! He'll make you do the dirty work for him! Nightmare, you can't follow his orders!"  
  
A chuckle from the form on the machine. "That's just it, my dear Rouge... I'm not following his orders..."  
  
She gaped in shock. "What...?"  
  
"I'm doing this.... because I WANT to!"  
  
At this moment, the machine stopped moving, and seven lights of different colours appeared around Nightmare, in red, turquoise, green, purple, yellow, silver, and blue, repectively. Three on the left, three on the right, and one above him. They started to glow.  
  
"The Chaos Emeralds..." Rouge murmured. "No wonder he was able to knock me out so easily."  
  
"The wonder is..." Sonic started, "How did Eggman get them?"  
  
Tails winced. "We left them on the ARK!"  
  
"Damn. I KNEW we forgot something!"  
  
Nightmare cackled. "A lot good it'll do you now! Because now WE have 'em!"  
  
"Close to 8 months, actually," Eggman added.  
  
The said Emeralds began to glow brighter as they responded to Nightmare's Chaos energy. He stretched out his limbs, taking in the power. It wasn't the least bit overwhelming. It made him feel... calm, like he was being completed. He began to flash a brilliant white...  
  
Then he dissapeared.  
  
Eggman had dropped a large black curtain, one that blocked the view that our heros had of Nightmare.   
  
This, of course, had them stumped. "Yo, Egghead!" Knuckles glared. "What's with your bedsheet?"  
  
"Be quiet, you fool!" He spat in reply. "He is not complete yet. Only when he is done can I reveal him to the world!"  
  
Sparks became visible from behind the curtain, some of them flying over the top. Nightmare's glow suddenly became amazingly strong. His lit-up form became visible through the curtain, and gust of wind created by the Chaos Power blew Sonic and the others backwards. They all lay on the floor, clinging to it for all they had.  
  
"What... what is happening to him?!" Sonic yelled against the gusting winds.  
  
"I dunno," Tails yelled back, "But he looks kinda like my nightlight!"  
  
The winds blew even harder. Eggman's laugh started in his throat, then slowly grew louder, until it boomed and echoed all throughout the room. "And now, I present to you all:"  
  
with a swift hand, he yanked the curtain back,  
  
"Your Worst Nightmare." 


	10. Lost Hope

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Nine: Lost Hope  
  
  
  
He was a midnight blue, with electric blue lightning stripes present where his regular red stripes were before. His shoes were the deepest black. His eyes were an even darker red, more wine-coloured, with a lust for blood. Even his grin, which was mischevious before, was now plain sinister. Just by looking at the small grin you could tell how much he was DYING to say, "I'm going to have so much fun killing you."  
  
It was the true form of evil. He had finally conquered his dream... he was their Worst Nightmare. Ivo saw that the first part of his plan was successful, and hurried to his EggWalker to prepare Phase II.  
  
Nightmare jumped off the pedastal, the wind finally ceasing. He glared at the gang as they rose to their feet. "Hmm, well I can't say I'm too fond of you five, but it must've taken you a lot of guts to sneak into our base. I admire such courage, even if it is foolishness, so I'll make you a deal: Stay out of my way, and I'll let you live."  
  
Amy whimpered in fear as Sonic stepped forward to meet his enemy. "Over my dead body..." he hissed dangerously.  
  
Nightmare clenched his teeth. "I can arrange that." He grabbed Sonic, held him over his head, and swung him around, flinging him hard into the console. The Emeralds were shaken loose from the console and clattered to the floor. Sonic lay motionless.  
  
Amy screamed. "Nooo, SONIC!!!" Sobbing, she hurried to his silent form.  
  
Nightmare cackled. "Was that the same hedgehog that gives the doctor such a hard time? I hardly believe it." He turned to Tails, Rouge, and Knuckles, and pointed at Sonic. "See there? May that be a warning to you three, should we cross paths again." His jet skates flared wildly, and Nightmare slammed up through three stories until he broke the roof that gave him access to the outside.  
  
Knuckles watched the debris fall for a few seconds, then turned his attention to the fallen hedgehog. "Oh no!" He rushed over to them, Rouge and Tails on his heels.  
  
"Sonic!!" Amy shook him violently. "Sonic, wake up!" She dropped her head on his chest, sobbing "Why won't he respond? Why won't he say something...?"  
  
"...........ow..."  
  
"Sonic?!" Amy gasped. "Oh, Sonic!!" She threw her arms around him. "I'm so glad your okay!!"  
  
He grunted at her embrace. "Easy, Amy. It's good to see you, too." He hugged her back.  
  
Knuckles stepped forward. "Sonic, what should we do? Nightmare is already off to... destroy stuff."  
  
"Gee, that tells me a lot," Sonic quipped sarcastically.  
  
"Well..."  
  
"I know, I know, Knux." He stood up, using Amy for support. "We've got to stop him. The question is... 'how?'."  
  
Tails turned to start pacing... and fell flat on his face.  
  
"Tails!" Sonic gasped. "You okay?"  
  
The orange kitsune was silent for a few seconds. "You know, Sonic..." he said softly, "The key to stopping Nightmare is right under our noses..." he grinned. "Or in my case, our feet." Tails stood up and held out the yellow Emerald he tripped on.  
  
Sonic took the Emerald from Tails, pondering deeply. "...Super Sonic?"  
  
"Do you think it would work?" Rouge asked.  
  
Sonic frowned. "What other choice do I have? I can't fight him in my regular state..." He sat down and closed his eyes.  
  
In the blackness behind his eyelids, he kept seeing a golden flash. Then Sonic thought he heard a voice. It was much like his own... it fact, it WAS his own. But yet it wasn't his. He didn't know... oh, how his head hurt. The voice was speaking something unintelligible.  
  
The golden flashes stopped. Soon, images of the city burning flooded Sonic's mind. He saw the electric blue steak that ws Nightmare, standing over something... something pink. And orange. Amy and Tails, helpless, fallen to the hands of Nightmare. Rouge and Knuckles had been tossed to the side.  
  
Sonic saw himself laying nearby, watching helplessly at Nightmare attacked his friends. He suddenly turned to his right and saw Shadow's image, looking calm, smiling softly. Shadow was saying something... everything went black. But he still saw Shadow. Sonic leaned forward in his mind, trying to hear his friend's words. His lips were moving... his voice was getting louder.  
  
Shadow's image began to slowly change. His quills became sharper, and his skin started yellowing. Shadow's voice changed to the voice Sonic heard before. HIS voice. Suddenly, it became perfectly clear.  
  
Sonic jumped up from his position, no longer feeling weak. He held up the Emerald and shouted what he was told:  
  
"Super Sonic has returned!!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sunny stared from her place in the bush, frowning. Shadow was really gone... he had finally left. Crying lightly, she headed back to the garden.  
  
"How could he go?" She whispered in Chao. "I thought he liked me."  
  
She was almost back home. But then a sound behind her caught her eye. she whirled around hopeful. It was Shadow... but he painted himself blue. (How odd,) she thought. (Oh well.) She squeaked her welcome cry, and waited a response.  
  
The blue Shadow turned at her, sneered, and turned away.  
  
Sunny huffed. No one could treat her like that! She ran forward and jumped on him before he could run away.  
  
"Get off of me!" He yelled and started shaking his leg.  
  
Sunny clung for all she was worth.  
  
Growling, the blue Shadow plucked her from his leg and threw her as far as he could. "Maybe that'll teach you to not listen to me!"  
  
Sunny sat up, sniffling. Why was Shadow so mean? Unless... "It's not Shadow?" Sunny flew into a tree to get a better view. She quickly searched the blue hedgehog in the distance. His right wrist was naked.  
  
"I knew it! Shadow never goes anywhere without his night-light." Sunny climbed down. The blue Shadow didn't wear a Flame Bracelet, telling Sunny that it wasn't the real Shadow. "But..." she pouted, "Where is the real Shadow?"  
  
She didn't know. But she decided that she needed to find out. However, she wouldn't be able to do it alone.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Shadow ducked furth back behind the display pedestal he was hiding behind as he watched the electric blue blur whiz by. "That... was not Sonic." he decided. "Could that be Nightmare's 'super' form?"  
  
Shadow slipped around the corner. He head Amy's voice coming from the corridor to the right, though he couldn't make out what she was saying. (If everyone is down that way...) he slid to the left, (then I'll go *this* way.)  
  
He hurried down the left side of the hallway where he came into an unusual room. All along the side were notebooks filled with papers, journals, and books. In a way, it made Shadow think of a library. Some of them looked very old, while others looked as if they had been placed there that day. Shadow first looked at the old books, and found one labeled, "Ultimate LifeForm: Prototype One". He pulled it out and skimmed through it.  
  
In the book, he found a journal of Gerald's data on Shadow's progress, and a few photos. "My baby pictures..." Shadow grinned. "Aww, I was such a cutie!"  
  
He flipped through a few more pages, eventually coming across more in-depth background data, including several reasons for Shadow's existance. "But I already KNOW all that..." Shadow mumbled, shutting the book. "I was created to save Maria... a task in which I failed..."  
  
He shook his head, erasing the sad thoughts from his mind. He had fulfilled her promise; now she could be at peace. He made his way down to the newer looking books. "Hello, what's this?" He found a diary labeled "PROJECT: Nightmare". Shadow grinned. "My new friend." He skimmed most of it, it basically being Eggman's progress with Nightmare, which was pretty much the same as Gerald's progress with Shadow.  
  
Then Shadow found an entry that had been written the day before, one that interested him greatly...  
  
"November 4th; 12:13 PM  
  
I have been carefully calculating the Chaos Power given off by Super Sonic and Hyper Shadow during their fight with the FinalHazard. I had recorded them carefully, and was hoping I could use their data as a way to super-power Nightmare. Today, I think I have finally pulled things together. Nightmare has agreed to willingly work with me in an effort to create the Eggman Empire, a way to "give us both a legacy", as he puts it. I can't say I have ever been happier. He listens to my every command without any sign of resentment. I have no fear of him turning on me at this point.  
  
"As powerful as he is, he would not be able to do much without additional Chaos Power. That's where my studies for Sonic and Shadow came in. By watching their movements and abilities in both forms, I was able to project a plan for Nightmare, making him twice as strong. Nightmare was born of the Chaos Emerald power, so while he looks to be in a normal state, he is always in hyper form. By using the Emeralds again, he will grow ten times as strong. I have dubbed this his 'worst' form, since to the general people, it shall be the worst of their dreams come true."  
  
Shadow frowned. He really did not like the way this sounded. But there was more.  
  
"I have several theories on how Nightmare could possess such power. He could use the Emeralds I have, or should Sonic get to them first, he could steal the 'super' of Super Sonic by means of a Chaos rebirth. Then, there's the third theory, involving crippling the children of the Emeralds---"  
  
Shadow gasped and dropped the book. He could read no more. " 'Children of the Emeralds'? Those are the Chao!"  
  
Horrible visions of Sunny, Wave, Violet, and the others flashed in Shadow's mind. He left the diary on the floor and made his way out of the library and towards the exit. Right now, he did not care of the others saw him. He had to get back to Chao World. The Chao could be in danger!  
  
With all his might, Shadow glid across the island until he reached the center of it, where Chao World was located. Into his garden...  
  
Empty.  
  
"God DAMNIT!" Shadow stomped his foot on the ground. The cave was vacant, the pool was still, and no Chao were rolling in the grass. They were gone. Shadow held his head. "No... this can't be..." He felt tears form. "They can't be gone, no... but were they kidnapped, or did they look... for.... me....."  
  
Suddenly Shadow understood. They must've gone looking for him because he was gone so long. "Chances are they followed Nightmare. But where did Nightmare go?" He had to wonder. "I'll check the island first, then head off to Station Square. If not, I'll look to Sand Hill. The area around here really isn't all that big. Nightmare can't have gotten far."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Shadow was right; Nightmare hadn't gotten far. He was about 15 miles southwest from where Shadow was standing, right outside the public library.  
  
Nightmare stood in front of the spot where just days before, he was blown up the entire section. But then, he had needed a bomb. "Today, I don't need a bomb. I have me!" He slammed his fist into the side and watched the renovations go up in smoke. He had to notice how well an explosion went with the sunset.  
  
Over the next half-hour, Nightmare made his way around, terrorizing the city and the people living there. Houses were demolished. Screams echoed in his ears like music. A little splash of blood here and there completed the work. The world was his canvas, and the destruction of the city was just the first of his masterpieces.  
  
After a while, Nightmare made his way to the outskirts of the city, near the location of the Radical Highway Zone. He stood high up on a platform on a bridge, next to dozens of cars that were caught in a traffic jam to escape the city. He reached for a support cable. "This will be the first thing to go..."  
  
"Not if I can help it!"  
  
"Wha... YOU!"  
  
Nightmare stared at the creature on the beam high above him. He recognized this creature, but from where...? They never met in person... (Perhaps I saw a picture... wait, a picture!) "YOU! Super Sonic!!"  
  
"That's mah name, don't wear it out!" Sonic quipped as leapt down to Nightmare's level.   
  
Nightmare growled. "You're too late, hedghog. The city is mine to destroy."  
  
"That's nice, except that the city is actually MINE... to save."  
  
"In your dreams, hedgehog." Nightmare took a battle stance. "It's time to finish this!"  
  
Sonic too a stance of his own. "Couldn't have said it better myself."  
  
Nightmare lunged for Sonic. "Enough of your talk; prepare to die!"  
  
By now, the sky was completely dark, making the glowing combantants and their fight even more spectacular to witness. Sonic blocked the strike with ease, countering with a light-speed dash which knocked Nightmare into a support pole. However, Nightmare recovered from the attck much sooner than Sonic had predicted, and soon HE was flying backwards, teetering dangerously over the edge.  
  
Not one to quit easily, Sonic flipped back onto the bridge and knocked Nightmare into the traffic. Nightmare activated his jet skates and flew up, then divebombed Sonic from above. Groaning, Sonic stood up weakly. Nightmare flashed an evil grin. "Give up yet?"  
  
"Over my... dead... body..."  
  
"You said it, not me." Nightmare glowed a brilliant blue as he powered up, then dove in for the attack.  
  
"STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!" a high-pitched voice cried.  
  
Nightmare froze in mid-air. "What in the world...? Oh damnit! Why can't you people just leave me alone?!"  
  
Tails, Knuckles, Rouge and Amy came running along the side of the bridge where the battle was taking place. Their distraction gave enough time for Sonic to recover. "What are you guys doing here?"  
  
"We came to help, duh!" Knuckles said.  
  
Sonic shook his head. "I don't... no. I need to do this. Besides, how could you guys help?"  
  
"They can't!" Nightmare yelled. "You're history, Super Sonic!" With that he rammed his head into Sonic's stomach, sending him toppling into Amy. Sonic jumped back up, but kept getting bashed back by Nightmare, until he started to flash blue amist his golden glow.  
  
"Shit..." he muttered. He was losing power. Before long, he would return to his normal state, and then he was done for. The Chaos energy was starting to fade faster...  
  
...Something that seven children of the Emeralds running up behind Nightmare were able to sense...  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Cobalt gave the order, and the seven chao of Shadow's garden flew down and joined together. They formed a wall in front of Sonic and the others.  
  
"How cute..." Nightmare mocked. "The little blue blobs are trying to save you. Too bad their efforts will be futile!!" He raised his fist, but suddenly stopped.  
  
He heard a sound.  
  
A very joyous sound.  
  
Hell, it was downright cute! And it was starting to grow louder....  
  
And in stereo!  
  
He looked down to see the seven Chao all singing and dancing in sync, making humming noises and la-la-las to create a soft, peaceful song. Nightmare resisted.   
  
"No... you can't! Stop singing!"  
  
They did not listen. They sung louder. The balls on their heads began to glow a brilliant white.  
  
"You... no! You're stealing my power! ENOUGH!!!" Nightmare began to glow again, the same glow he had done before when he was trying to attack Sonic. "Fine. Steal my strentgh if you will, but if I'm going out, I'm going out with a BANG!"  
  
Amy reached for her Piko-Piko hammer. "You wouldn't..." she mentally readied herself to unleash the weapon.  
  
"Oh, believe me, you little pink pest... I would."   
  
And he did.  
  
But not without a slight change of plans.  
  
Instead of knocking the Chao away, Amy leapt in the way of the blast, whacking Nightmare with her hammer. Some of the Chao were still knocked over by the attack, but Amy took the full brunt. She went flying, right over the edge of the highway.  
  
Sonic, who was now his regular blue, dove and stretched out his arm and grabbed her wrist as her body hung over the side. Her hammer fell to the streets far below, out of eyesight due to the darkness. He pulled her up, holding her close so that she didn't fall. "Amy? Oh Amy!"  
  
She whimpered. "....S-Sonic...? Are the Ch-chao alright?"  
  
He gathered her up in a hug. "They're fine... and I'm glad to see that you're okay, too."  
  
"How sickeningly sweet..." Nightmare spat as he approached them. "Too bad I'm a sour person." He raised his fast. "Say goodnight, forever!"  
  
"HOLD IT!!"  
  
Nightmare growled. "NOW what... ?!"  
  
A lone black figure stood above them, blending in against the night sky. "If you want them, you'll have to get through ME first..."  
  
The gang all gasped in shock, except for Sunny, who cheered, and Sonic, who grinned. "Shadow!!"  
  
Nightmare glared at Shadow as he leapt down. "Shadow, eh? I've heard of you."  
  
"Perhaps you haven't heard enough."  
  
A growl, and a summoning of Chaos Spear.  
  
Shadow jumped away from the yellow bolts. "You see Nightmare, there's something interesting about me. I'm immortal."  
  
Nightmare lunged.  
  
"I live forever. It's odd, really, because there's nothing more I want than death."   
  
Shadow dodged.  
  
"However, a very dear friend of mine begged me to make a promise, and I will KEEP that promise!!" The anger building up in Shadow was unmistakable. Slowly, he was being dragged into Rage.  
  
Nightmare frowned, waiting for the right moment to attack. "What does that have to do with me?"  
  
"I have to save the earth. Give the mortals a chance to be happy. Save them... from you! For you see, Nightmare, *I* am your enemy, not Sonic."  
  
"I... I don't understand."  
  
"...I won't let you live a lie, Nightmare..." Shadow stood up straight. "*I* am the world's Ultimate LifeForm."  
  
Nightmare gasped. "No.. it can't be..."  
  
"Oh, but it can. You see, you were created in my likeness, which is why we look the same. The only real difference, is that I came first. I am the original."  
  
"So I am your clone..." Nightmare scowled. "But! I am your clone in appearance only!"  
  
"I agree. We can't be identical. I know things that you don't."  
  
"Really?" Nightmare pondered. "Such as...?"  
  
"Such as... Eggman left something interesting out of your battleplan." Shadow jabbed out his right hand and gripped Nightmare by the tuft of fur on his chest. "In the name of Maria Robotnik, I will destroy you!" A white ball of energy began to form around Shadow's hand, taking a Saturn-ish shape.  
  
With a gasp, and a grit of the teeth, Shadow emmitted this one lone cry:  
  
"FINAL CHAOS REBIRTH!!!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The white energy spread to Shadow's arm, then covered his body, and he flashed a silver colour. Nightmare was once again returned to his regular black. "What... what happened?!" He demanded of Shadow.  
  
"I told you, I know things that you don't. The Chaos Rebirth allowed Hyper Shadow to fall into existince once again."  
  
"So you stole my power. Big deal." Nightmare growled. "I was created to be better than you! You'll never stop me!"  
  
Shadow glared deeply. "We shall see, Nightmare. OH, how we shall see." 


	11. The Final Fight

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter Ten: The Final Fight  
  
  
  
It all lay in Shadow now. The will to succeed, the strength to overcome, the power to win the Final Fight.  
  
Still, as the two hedgehogs battled, something still tugged in Rouge's mind. She felt as if she had seen this before, even thought she had not known Shadow was alive until about five minutes ago. She took a headcount; seven present, not including the Chao. Where was the eighth person...?  
  
"Why is this so familiar? Why am I thinking there should be another person?  
  
//A soul and a soul, this 1-8 | Must once again unite | To pool together Chaos stregth | To win the final fight//  
  
"That's it!" She cried. She turned to Amy. "Amy, where are your books?"  
  
"My books? They're at my apartment."  
  
"Damn. I was hoping you had them with you."  
  
"Oh. Why do you want them?"  
  
Rouge gripped Amy's hand. "I think I know what it all means. Hurry, climb on."  
  
"But... the Chao..."  
  
"They'll be fine. Now c'mon! There isn't much time!"  
  
Amy obeyed and gripped onto the white bat's back. Rouge made her way up the top of the support beam and flew across the vast highway towards Amy's place. (Please be careful, Shadow. I promise I'll be back soon.)  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The battle was rough. Strike after strike after strike. Yet neither Shadow nor Nightmare were ready to admit defeat. Far from it. Both were raging, ready to fight for their own cause, even if it meant to the death.  
  
"Give it up, Shadow!" Nightmare called into the night. "I'm stronger then you, and you know it!"  
  
"Perhaps you outrank me in strength, but you lack in experience. CHAOS SPEAR!" Shadow summoned three yellow lightning bolts to plummet down on Nightmare's head.  
  
They connected, and Nightmare went flying. "...What? How did you do that?"  
  
Shadow grinned as Nightmare hopped to his feet. "I told you, I am the ultimate."  
  
"In your dreams, you imposter!"  
  
"ME the imposter? HA! Now that's a good one, since I was born well over fifty years ago, and you... well, your development began a mere eight months ago."  
  
Nightmare stopped. "H-how did you know?"  
  
Shadow cracked his knuckles. "It's like I told you before: I know things you don't." He dashed up and grabbed Nightmare by his tuft again. "And I repeat: you lack my experience. CHAOS SPEAR!"  
  
Another dead-on hit, yet Nightmare was still very strong. This upset Shadow. His Hyper form wouldn't last forever, while Nightmare's powers were infinate, since it was his regular state. He needed to get more strentgh! But from where?  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Turn on the light!"  
  
"Hang on; I'm getting there!"  
  
"Well, you're not getting there fast enough!"  
  
"OW! Watch it, Rouge!" Amy rubbed her head. "What do you want here, anyway?"  
  
Rouge practically dove onto the livingroom table where the five books sat. She grabbed "Universe of Life" and opened the first page. "After a joyous summer sun..." she read to herself. "This is it!" She slammed the book shut and ran out the door. "Okay Amy; let's roll."  
  
"Already?" Amy stood in the doorway.  
  
"Well, yeah! All I needed was the book!"  
  
"Oh."  
  
"C'mon! We have to get back there!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Shadow grunted. This was not going to be an easy fight. While he was slowly weakening Nightmare, he himself was losing power as the minutes ticked away. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before the Chaos energy ran out, leaving himself open to Nightmare's power.  
  
Until then, however, he was still at equal rank with Nightmare, and was surely going to take advantage of that. The strikes, the bolts, they kept charging at each other, with no real definate winner as of yet.  
  
Rouge and Amy flew in. "Sonic, come here!" the white bat cried.  
  
Sonic jogged over, reluctant to leave Shadow's side. "What is it?"  
  
"Here." She handed him the book. "I've figured it out."  
  
"Well, don't leave us in suspense!" Knuckles joined them. "Spit it out."  
  
"Well, look at it!" Rouge shoved the book into Knuckles' face. " 'Two of the 8, they will first meet/By thinking "He is me!"/They will be indenticle only/As far as eyes can see'. Don't you get it? That's Shadow and Nightmare!"  
  
"Yeah..." Sonic nodded, catching on to what Rouge was saying. "Go on."  
  
" '3 and 4 will form a love/Of one Expected pair./Their faith for one another will teach/Another one to care.' "  
  
Sonic frowned. "Form a love? Expected? Who do they mean?"  
  
Knuckles and Rouge glanced at each other and blushed.  
  
Sonic's face broke into a grin. "Ohhh... I get it." He nudged Knuckles with his elbow. "Do I hear wedding bells in the future?"  
  
Knuckles tried to stop his face from going even redder. "Not now, Sonic! Shadow is still in danger!"  
  
Sonic nodded. "Right, right. Rouge, next line?"  
  
" 'This 'other one' makes number 5/Who eats and drinks his speed./No matter how he runs from six,/He'll always want their need.' "  
  
"Speed, eh?" Sonic grinned. "I think that's me. But who is six? Who do I run from... oh."  
  
" ' The 6th of 8 is pure of heart/And never takes a fall./They'll be the first - and the last/To know about it all.' " Rouge read the next part out. "Pure of heart... first to know, because she found the books, and last to know because she didn't realize everything until now... yeah, that's Amy all right."  
  
Sonic sweatdropped. "Oh God..."  
  
Knuckles nudged Sonic. "C'mon, True Blue, you know you like her."  
  
"Well, a little, but it's nothing serious."  
  
"Nothing serious *yet*."  
  
Sonic twitched. "Next line, Rouge!!"  
  
Rouge giggled. "Oh, if I must. That was getting pretty entertaining." She cleared her throat. " 'Now 7 and 8 see much alike/But they are enemies./They might be friends, if only they/Could see what the other sees.' Well, the only people left to fit that category are Eggman and Tails, but... what do they have in common?"  
  
"Robots."  
  
All eyes turned to Tails. "We have robots in common. I like to build and repair; he likes to build and repair. Our lives revolve around mechanics."  
  
"That makes eight..." Rouge tallied.  
  
Sonic nodded. "The last part... what did the last part say?!"  
  
"Uhh... 'A soul and a soul, this 1-8/Must once again unite/To pool together Chaos stregth/To win the final fight.' "  
  
Sonic frowned. "All eight must unite... that means no victory will come unless Eggman is present to watch us kick his fat ass!"  
  
"Chaos strength..." Knuckles murmured thoughtfully. "Unless... it's not 'kay-os', but 'chows'?  
  
Amy looked thoughtful. "The Chao? You think the Chao hold the key?"  
  
"It's worth a shot." Sonic led the group to the tiny children. "We've got to get them to sing!"  
  
"Great idea, Sonic," Rouge commented. "But how?"  
  
"Uhh..." (Think, damnit!) "Which one of you is Sunny?"  
  
The chao with the yellow ball squealed at hearing her name.  
  
"Okay..." he bent down to her level. "Listen, you and the others have to help Shadow. He needs you!"  
  
Sunny blinked.  
  
"You don't understand me, do you?"  
  
She said nothing. She just stared at Sonic with blue eyes.  
  
(Waitaminute. Since when did normal Chao have blue eyes?) Sonic peered closer. Sunny's eyes were not a true blue, but they suddenly became blue-tinted, and much shinier, as if they were filling with lights. She nodded, and turned towards the others.  
  
All seven Children of the Emeralds lines up in a row and joined hands. They began to sing, but it was a different song. It sounded almost like a chant, as if they were summoning something.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Finally..."  
  
Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik had at last finished his part in his joined effort with Nightmare. Unthinkingly, he veered to the left and hovered to a stretch of road. He ran up the highway and used his boosters to land above where Nightmare and Shadow were fighting.  
  
(Eh? How in the world did I end up here? No matter!) "Nightmare! Don't get discouraged! You can get him!"  
  
Such encouragement. It was not much to most ears, but for Nightmare, it gave him the strength to carry on. He stuck Shadow more and more, with more force each time. Before long, Shadow strayed off to the side near his allies, catching his breath.  
  
Sonic grew ever more worried. "Chao or not, it does say we have to pool together. Shadow!" He called. "Let me help you!"  
  
Shadow, with his back turned towards Sonic, shook his head. "No, I can't do that." He glanced over his shoulder. "This is my fight... and besides, I've put you through enough trouble."  
  
"But you can't do it alone!"  
  
Shadow hung his head. Sonic was right. He couldn't do it alone. He turned, outstretching his left hand towards his blue counterpart. "Sonic..." He could almost reach him... closer...  
  
And then, suddenly, further. And faster.  
  
Nightmare had taken advantage of Shadow being offguard, and knocked him clear across the platform, where his head hung off the side, threatening to drag him down far, far below.  
  
"SHADOW!"  
  
Nightmare ignored Sonic's cries. He watched instead as Shadow lay helpless, and delivered a swift kick to his side.  
  
Shadow went flying, but used his skates to push him back towards the platform, which he was able to grab with his right hand.  
  
Nightmare growled. "Why won't you just die already?!" His hand glowed yellow. "CHAOS SP---- ahhhhhhhhhh!"  
  
Where Nightmare once stood, Sonic planted his feet. A fast homing attack had dissolved the Ultimate LifeForm's current threat, at least for a few seconds. Sonic reached down to Shadow. "Please, Shadow..."  
  
Shadow disregarded Sonic's outstretched hand. "I can't... Sonic, don't. I don't want you to get involved!!"  
  
"But I AM involved. I was involved in this from day one. Please...."  
  
Shadow felt his grip sliding loose. "Sonic, I..." he trailed off. Shadow started deeply into the emerald orbs gazing at him, and noticed they looked wet. A single drop of liquid fell onto Shadow's cheek. (...Crying? Is Sonic crying... for me?)  
  
"Please, Shadow. I lost you once. I won't lose you again."  
  
A thousand things flew around in Shadow's head, but one thing stood out over them all. It was a voice, the voice of an angel. She spoke, over and over, "Shadow, I know you can do it!"  
  
//Shadow, I know you can do it... Shadow, I know you can do it... Shadow, I know you can do it... //  
  
"I can do it..." he whispered. "I can do it! SONIC!!!" He reached up and firmly grabbed the cobalt hedgehog's outstretched hand.  
  
Smiling, Sonic pulled his friend up with one strong arm. He placed his other hand over the one already in his grip. "Great to have you back, pal."  
  
"Wouldn't miss it for the world." Shadow grinned. "Let's do it."  
  
Their faces turned Furious. Fearless. Focused. Shadow ran towards Nightmare, full speed. The Chao began to sing again.... but not just any song....  
  
(Our song... the one I shared with Maria...)  
  
The tune filled Shadow's mind. All he could feel was power, and hope. He could do this. Maria believed he could. Sonic believed he could. No... not believed, KNEW. They KNEW he would do it. And he would.  
  
For them...  
  
"In the name of Maria Robotnik..."  
  
He would win. 


	12. On My Way Home

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Chapter 11: On My Way Home  
  
  
  
/I have been given  
One moment from Heaven  
As I am walking  
Surrounded by night.../  
  
  
The sharp lyrics, the mystic melody, and Maria's angelic voice to match... his lullaby.  
  
  
/Stars high above me...  
Make a wish under moonlight!/  
  
  
In her memory, he had to fight. Her spirit was in him... only he could become victorious. He struck.  
  
  
/On my way home  
I remember  
Only good days/  
  
  
Life on ARK was so peaceful... could his life on Earth be the same?  
  
  
/On my way home  
I remember   
All the best days/  
  
  
This was his time. His time to shine. His time to keep his promise, and fulfill it once again.   
  
Nightmare faultered.  
  
  
/I'm on my way home  
I can remember  
Every new day/  
  
  
A punch. A kick. Slowly, it was working. Shadow truly wasn't fighting alone. He had Sonic behind him...  
  
And Maria inside him.  
  
  
/I move in silence  
With each step taken/  
  
  
The angels cried frozen tears for Shadow as light white rain began to fall.  
  
  
/Snow falling round me  
Like angels in flight/  
  
  
(They look like angels...) he noticed. Angel... Maria. A punch. A kick. And then...  
  
"NOW, SONIC!"  
  
Silent against the snowy night, the cobalt hedgehog stood upright and summoned the Sonic Wind. A heavy green gust surrounded both Nightmare and Shadow, sending them up into the air. Both used their skates for extra support, as they were both weakened from the battle.  
  
Shadow panted heavily. For a moment, his attenen was drawn away from Nightmare's seering glare to a light.  
  
The half-moon.  
  
It was shining on him, right through the clouds.  
  
  
/Far in the distance  
Is my wish under moonlight/  
  
  
A wish... a wish for a happy life. For his friends. For Maria.   
  
  
/On my way home  
I remember  
Only good days/  
  
  
"For Maria!" He cried. "In the name of Maria Robotnik, you shall be destroyed, Nightmare!"  
  
  
/On my way home  
I remember   
All the best days/  
  
  
"Come and get me, Shadow!"  
  
  
/I'm on my way home  
I can remember  
Every new day/  
  
  
The Chao hummed the melody only, but the words were ever clear in Shadow's mind. The song she used to sing for her dreams... for her wish to live on Earth. Shadow gathered up the power.  
  
  
/On my way home  
I remember  
Only good days/  
  
  
In unison, they cried, "CHAOS STORM!!!"  
  
  
/On my way home  
I remember   
All the best days/  
  
  
A red energy began to form, coming from out of nowhere it seemed. It gathered, overloaded, and exploded, knocking them both back. Shadow landed on his back, near the edge of the platform, eyes closed. However, Nightmare was well over the edge of the opposite side. Sonic reached out to try and save Nightmare, but his efforts were to no avail. The ebony hedgehog fell to the ground below.  
  
  
/I'm on my way home  
I can remember  
Every new day/  
  
  
Sonic ran over to Shadow, who lay with his eyes closed. He took Shadow in his arms."Shadow! Say something!"  
  
Shadow moaned weakly. He opened his eyes to see a blurred blue form. "Sonic...?"  
  
"Yes?" Sonic replied.  
  
"...Did that kill me?"  
  
"No."  
  
"..........Damn."  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"On My Way Home" by Enya  
  
Lyrics © 1998 Roma Ryan  
  
Melody © 1998 Enya  
  
I apologize for the extreme shortness of this chapter. As a consolation, I will upload the Epilogue (which is much longer) tomorrow. 


	13. Epilogue

PROJECT: Nightmare  
Epilogue  
  
  
  
With a groan and a grunt, Shadow arose to his feet with the help of his ally and friend, Sonic the Hedgehog. Shadow's fur began to flash black, the flashes getting longer each time. The Chaos power was leaving him. Exhausted, he collapsed into Sonic's arms. With a heavy sigh, there was a white glow, and then, black and red. "It...it's done..." he heaved.  
  
Sonic supported him as he stood up straight. They walked together alongside Tails, Knuckles, Amy, and Rouge. The seven Chao watched silently as they made their way to the opposite side of the platform. Shadow knelt down and stared over the edge into the deep dark abyss that was now Nightmare's grave...  
  
And sighed.  
  
"What a waste of life..." Shadow shook his head. "It's a damn shame what Robotnik had done to him."  
  
"I guess so..." Rouge said, "but... you said he was made in your likeness, Shadow. Wouldn't he be immortal?"  
  
"That's just it; I don't think he was." Shadow explained. "I followed you guys when you went to infiltrate Eggman's base. I wandered around by myself for a while and came across a diary of his progress with Nightmare. Apparently when Nightmare emerged into the world, he was already fully grown. When I emerged..." Shadow smiled, "I was a baby."  
  
"I don't get it," Tails tilted his head. "How would that make a difference?"  
  
"By emerging fully grown, Nightmare skipped many development stages that I went through. Besides that..." he turned his gaze back towards the darkness below, "There were some things that Professor Gerald knew that the Doctor didn't. Even if Nightmare went through those extra development stages, he may not have gotten the same results that the Professor had with me." Shadow bowed his head. Then he looked at his cobalt counterpart and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Well, thanks for trying to save him for me, Sonic."  
  
Sonic smiled. "I did what I could."  
  
Shadow nodded and turned to the seven Chao, who were staring at him intently. He held out his arms. "C'mon, Sunny-girl. Let's go home."  
  
Sunny didn't move. Instead, she looked at Wave, Violet, Emerald, Shimmer, Cobalt and Flame. They all nodded in unison.  
  
Shadow frowned. "Sunny, what...?"  
  
Sunny stood in the middle of the other six Chao, who formed a circle around her. The balls atop their heads began glow white, and they started to sing. One voice was louder then the rest, and it began to change. It sounded more human-like.  
  
Sunny began to lift into the air. The light given off by their Chao things was begining to take a form. It appeared, at first, to be a series of shapes joined together. Then it began to colour, forming the image of a young girl wearing a blue dress. Her eyes were a mysterious blue, like her dress. Her hair was a silky blonde, and flowed gently down her shoulders. She smiled with her pink lips. "Shadow..."  
  
Shadow was completely stunned. Sunny was the spirit of... "...Maria?"  
  
"Shadow, you did it!" She held out her arms.  
  
Happiness surged through the ebony hedgehog. He felt his strength returning as he ran towards her. "Maria!!!"   
  
He could touch her. Her silken hair, her delicate face, her soft embrace... She wasn't just some illusion or memory. She was real. And she was here. "Oh Maria... it's you!" He looked up at her with tear-filled eyes.  
  
"Oh, my Shadow..." she whispered, gently stroking his quills, "Yes, it's me. And I'm so proud of you!"  
  
Shadow frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"  
  
She kept her warm smile. "You kept your promise to me, AND you fulfilled it, not once, but twice!" She hugged him tightly. "It's not every day that you find someone that dedicated, and..." she sighed happily, letting warm tears fall, "It makes me so happy, to see what you've established for us."  
  
"For us? Maria, I... I'm afraid I don't understand."  
  
She giggled. "Ah, you haven't changed a bit. Still curious... What I mean is, I'm happy that you've been able to fulfill not only our promise, but also our dream. Remember? I always wanted to live on earth, and you wanted to find the answers. You've established that, Shadow. You've found your answers. They're all around you, right now."  
  
"All... around me?" He turned around, not letting go of Maria's hand.  
  
Maria used her free hand to display Sonic and the others. "Look around you, Shadow. Your friends have established you. They are your answers... they are why you were brought into this world." She closed her eyes and looked down.  
  
Knuckles bowed his head in respect. Maria was right. Shadow was brought into the world to help the lives of others. In fact, Knuckles realized, it was the same reason HE was born. One key to his destiny was that his destiny linked with others. Amy's books were in fact the Elemental Scrolls.  
  
Shadow's gaze was soft, serene. "Oh Maria..."  
  
She looked up again, and lightly touched his face. "I have to go now, Shadow. But do not let us part with sadness. Remember that I am always with you, and you are NEVER alone." She slowly let go of Shadow's hand.   
  
(No sadness,) Shadow thought. Trembling, he let go of her hand and watched her step back, but he smiled the whole time.  
  
She bowed in respect. "Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog. Until we meet again!!" Her form once again became a brilliant beacon of light, and when it receded, Sunny sat where Maria once stood, a questionmark over her head.  
  
Slowly, Shadow approached her and knelt down. "Sunny?"  
  
She looked up at him with her curious eyes and smiled, jumping into his arms. She nuzzled his neck and giggled.  
  
The other Chao, not wanting to miss an oppertunity to get free huggles, followed Sunny's example and jumped on Shadow, knocking him over. They squealed in delight.  
  
"WOAH! He-hey, stop that! That tickles! AhhahahhaAH! Hey Sonic, a little help here?!" Shadow managed to cry out amidst his laughing. "Ahh! Chao kisses!"  
  
Sonic bent over, grinning mischeiveously. "What, Mr. Ultimate LifeForm can't take a little Chao affection?"  
  
That's when they all noticed Sonic, and their first thought was "Yay!", so Wave, Cobalt, and Emerald jumped on him.  
  
Shadow grinned. "Now, who can't take some Chao affection again?"  
  
Amy sighed and shook her head. "You guys..." She scooped up Violet and hugged her. "I think, that after a fight like that, we could all use some Chao affection." She giggled as Violet curled up to her.  
  
Nods and mutters of agreement surfaced as each character picked up a Chao... well, Shadow had two: Sunny and Shimmer. Sonic took Cobalt, Rouge picked up Emerald, Knuckles nuzzled up with Flame, and Tails grabbed Wave. They made their way back towards White Island, chattering happily amongst themselves.  
  
From above, they were being watched. Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik watched in disgust as they walked away, all happy and joyous. They seemed to have forgotten he was there. "They probably DID forget..." he growled. "Those imbecilic morons! Thay have no idea what they've done! They just come on here and destroy my child like he was nothing!! Oh, but Nightmare is something, I'll let you know that!"  
  
Still, as he watched the group walk away, he was reminded of Shadow's words.   
  
//There were some things that Professor Gerald knew that the Doctor didn't...//  
  
"I wonder what these 'things' are..." Eggman hopped in his EggWalker. "I suppose there's only one way to find out!  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Tails, I can't thank you enough."  
  
"It was no problem, Shadow. Besides, it gave me something fun to do."  
  
Shadow looked at the cylindrical contraption. "Are you sure it works?"  
  
"Positive. It's spent a week in testing before I installed it here."  
  
A week had passed, and Shadow the Hedgehog watched on as Miles "Tails" Prower packed up his toolbox. Tails had just finished his project of installing a teleporter in Shadow's new apartment. Shadow had come to the conslusion that a hedgehog didn't really belong in a Chao garden, so he decided to start a real life for himself in the city. However, he knew that the Chao would miss him terribly, so Tails offered to build two teleporters so that they could visit Shadow at any time, and then easily go back home. One was at Shadow's place, the other Tails had yet to install inside the garden.  
  
"But what would happen if they come when I'm not home?" Shadow pondered with worry.  
  
"That's easy." Tails grinned. "They'd eat your food, jump on your furniture, and leave before you got home and noticed."  
  
"Heh, true." Shadow nodded. "But still, I think I should give you something for all your work! I wouldn't feel right knowing you did all this for me and didn't get paid."  
  
"Well, if you insist..." Tails grinned ear to ear, "You can take me out for some dinner!"  
  
"Deal!" Shadow said without missing a beat. "Where to?" They headed for the door.  
  
"Well, first I have to set up the garden transporter, but when we're done, we can head out to this new buffet down the street...."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"That one?"  
  
"That one."  
  
"You think so?"  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Well... I dunno."  
  
"Oh, c'mon. It has her name written all over it."  
  
"I hope your right..."  
  
"Am I ever wrong?"  
  
Knuckles grinned. "No, I suppose you aren't, Sonic."  
  
Sonic walked with Knuckles up the counter where the red echidna made his purchase. He took the small bag from behind the counter and fingered it nervously. "Oh man... I can't believe I'm doing this."  
  
"Hey man, relax!" Sonic squeezed his shoulder affectionately. "She'll love it."  
  
"I hope so..." Knuckles peered into the bag and pulled out the box. He opened it and stared at it's contents, filling ever more with anxiousness and doubt.  
  
Sonic placed a hand over the box. "Don't think about it. Just take it little by little, like any other date."  
  
Knuckles exhaled. "You're right, Sonic." He put the box back in the bag.  
  
"Am I ever wrong?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Amy paced around her bedroom, nervous as ever. Every few moments she would stop to check her reflection in the mirror, just to make sure her red evening gown wasn't torn, that her quills were still brushed down neatly, and that her white sandals hadn't busted a heel... even though there wasn't much heel on the shoe to bust.  
  
"Stop pacing, you're making me dizzy." Rouge commented as she sat on the bed and watched Amy move back and forth.  
  
"You know, you don't have to watch."  
  
"But I can't give you my opinion if you don't stand still!!"  
  
"Oh. Right." Amy sighed heavily, took once more glance in the mirror, and posed for Rouge. "Is this better?"  
  
Rouge tilted her head. "Not quite... it's missing something."  
  
Amy's face filled with horror. "I am? OH NO! What am I gonna do?!" She started running around in circles, panicking.  
  
Rouge tapped her chin in thought. "Let's see... what else would she need to make this a perfect first date?"  
  
"NO NO NO!! This isn't good! Sonic is gonna SEE ME and flip OUT because I'M NOT PRETTYYYYYYYY!!!  
  
"I GOT IT!"  
  
Amy stopped dead in her tracks. "You do?"  
  
Rouge pulled a white blossom off of the bouquet that was sitting on Amy's nightstand. She placed it next to Amy's left ear, securing it by tucking the stem under her headband. "There. NOW it's done."  
  
"Wow, really? Oh thank you Rouge!" She gathered the bat up in a hug.   
  
"It was no trouble, Ames." She pulled away from the hug. "Now, I've got to go get ready for my own date. See ya around." Rouge headed for the door when she head the sound of Amy giggling. "What?"  
  
"*snx* N-nothing...."  
  
Rouge scratched her head, shrugged, and left back towards her own house.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Wave! Do you mind?"  
  
The blue-and-turquoise Chao giggled at the tiny orange fox as he finished work on the teleporter. "Look, I know you're eager to raid Shadow's fridge, but I need to add the final touches." He knelt down and whispered. "Just a few more minutes and you can all the free food you want!"  
  
"I heard that."  
  
Tails turned to see Shadow grinning, with Sunny clinging to his head. "They'll have plenty of food here."  
  
"Oh Shadow... back from seed hunting already?"  
  
"Yep... Sunny knows what to do now." He set the blue-and-yellow Chao back down. "It's about time they learned to do things themselves. Now that Eggman's gone, White Island is safe for them."  
  
"That's good, but Shadow..." Tails stood up, a look of worry on his face. "About Eggman... actually, about his lab... we have to destroy it."  
  
"Ah yes... that would be good."  
  
"The most efficient way would be to blow it up, but that might harm the Chao habitat."  
  
"Mmm... that would be bad." Shadow set Sunny down and gave a pat to Violet. "Why don't we make plans to go through it? We can keep anything valuable, and burn whatever is necessary. As for the actual tree... well, we could always open a firewood stand!"  
  
"Shadow..."  
  
"I'm serious! That thing is made of a synthetic wood fiber, which would burn as well as real wood can."  
  
Tails shook his head, smiling. "Well, if you say so. Why don't we talk about it over a nice meal?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Rouge stepped inside the Welcome Buffet and gasped. "Oh wow... this is certainly different!"  
  
Knuckles took her hand and led them to their table by the window. "I told you this date might be a little bit... 'unordinary'."  
  
"Yeah, but this... God, it's beautiful! And you even got us reservations for such a nice table..." Rouge shook her head in disbelief. "It's all so wonderful...."  
  
"I'm uh... glad you like it," he said, pulling out her chair.  
  
"That's okay; I got it." Rouge seated herself and looked around. "Don't they give you menus?"  
  
"It's a buffet."  
  
"Ohhh... right." She noticed the other patrons dressed a bit more casually. She looked down at her sleeveless sky blue dress that hung to her knees and her white sandals. "You know... now I feel like I overdressed." She looked at Knuckles in his emerald green sweater and black pants.  
  
"Ah, don't worry about it. This is one of those places that doesn't have a real dress code." He took her hand again. "Now, I don't know about you, but I'm hungry!" (Which is surprising, considering how nervous I am.)  
  
"Y-yeah, me too." Rouge stood up and started walking towards the buffet table. Then she stopped dead in her tracks. "What in the world....? Is that... Sonic?!  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"...So Amy, what brings you around these parts?"  
  
"I live here."  
  
"Right! Right..." Sonic looked away, blushing hard. Why couldn't he think of the right thing to say? He reached for the sugar bowl. "So, how do you take your.... Knuckles?!"  
  
Amy gave Sonic a weird look while calmly sipping her soup. "I take my knuckles on my hand, thank you."  
  
"Nono, I mean... there's Knuckles!"  
  
"Huh? Oh!" Amy grinned. "Who would've thought they came to the same place we did?" Then she frowned. "Sonic, you didn't tell them were coming here, did you?"  
  
"No. All Knux said was that he had planned somewhere nice to take her."  
  
"I'm not complaining," Amy said as she stood up to go get more food. "Maybe we'll get to watch him... Sonic, he IS doing to do it tonight, right?"  
  
Sonic recalled the conversation he and Knuckles had earlier that day. "He'd better..."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Hello, how are you doing tonight?"  
  
"Just fine. Can I have a table for two?"  
  
"Right this way, Sir..."  
  
Shadow winced. "Never call me 'Sir'..." he hissed quietly as the waiter led him and Tails to a booth near the buffet tables.  
  
"Will this do, Sir?"  
  
He twitched. "It's perfect..." he muttered through gritted teeth. Scowling, he slid into the booth opposite Tails.  
  
"What's wrong, Shadow?"  
  
"He called me 'Sir'! Now I know I'm old, but sheesh! Have I really aged THAT terribly?!"  
  
Tails grinned. "I think it's just customary of the employees. I came here by myself last week, and they called me 'Sir'."  
  
".....................oh. Well nevermind that," Shadow added quickly as he jumped up. "Let's get some grub."  
  
"I'm game!" Tails followed. Humming to himself as he walked around, grabbing some fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy, he set the food down on the table. "Now for some o'dat chili!" He licked his lips in anticipation. "They really do a good job here..."  
  
He grabbed a bowl, walked around the corner, and smacked into someone.  
  
"Oh, I'm sor... Amy?"  
  
The pink hedgehog looked up. "Huh? Oh hi Tails. What brings you here?"  
  
"Shadow's paying me back for something. How about you?"  
  
She grinned. "Sonic finally took me out on a date! Isn't he sweet?"  
  
(And you've been bugging him for HOW long and NOW he takes you out?) Tails just smiled and nodded in agreement. "Yes, that was very thoughtful of him." He spooned out some chili and walked back to his table to eat, Amy on his heels.  
  
"Knuckles is here, too."  
  
Tails choked on a bean. "He what?! He's HERE?!"  
  
"Uh huh. Rouge is with him, too."  
  
"Oh my... is he gonna..."  
  
"Is who going to what?" Shadow stood behind Amy, holding a platefull of food.  
  
Both Amy and Tails pointed over by the window where Rouge and Knuckles were dining.  
  
Shadow nodded. "Ahh... hehheh, good luck, Rad Red!"  
  
Amy giggled and hurried back over to where Sonic was sitting.  
  
"What took you so long?" Sonic asked.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Rouge giggled to herself. "Don't look now, but I think we're being watched."  
  
"Huh?" Knuckles glanced around and spotted Tails and Shadow glancing his way every few minutes. "...."  
  
"And over there! Sonic and Amy are here, too!"  
  
"?!"  
  
"Yeah, I know... they keep staring at us..." Rouge shook her head and cut up some more of her grilled chicken. "I don't know why, either. I mean, do I really look THAT funny when I eat?"  
  
Knuckles reached into his right pocket and fingered the box. He pushed it open and took out the tiny object inside, holding it firmly in his glove as he pulled his hand out of his pocket. (I was hoping I wouldn't have an audience... but it looks like it's now or never!) "R-Rouge... Can I ask you something?"  
  
"Sure thing, Knux." She took a bite of corn.  
  
Tails motioned to Shadow. "Look, there he goes!"  
  
He stood up and slowly made his way over to her end of the table. "We... we've known each other for...for quite some time now, and..." he chuckled nervously, "And... well, I really like being with you..."  
  
Rouge dropped her fork in surprise as he got up. (Oh God, what's he doing?)  
  
Amy caught something red moving out of the corner of her eye. She turned and gasped. "Sonic, look! I think he's gonna do it!"  
  
He kept his right fist clenched tightly. "And.... spending time with you gives me joy and freedom that I never through I could have."  
  
(Oh my... is this...?)  
  
"To... make a long story short..." Knuckles dropped to one knee and opened his hand, where a tiny ring sat in his palm. "Rouge... will you marry me?"  
  
Time seemed to stop in the restuarant.  
  
(It is! Oh my God!!) Rouge just stared. She felt her mouth drop as she glanced back and forth from Knuckles to the ring. It was a beautiful ring, with tiny blue topaz gems surrounding a clear, brilliant diamond. But for once, Rouge wasn't looking at the ring. She was looking at what it symbolized. She didn't dare speak.  
  
Knuckles kept a smile on his face, but inside he had shattered. (She doesn't want it. Oh man, I'm an idiot!)  
  
"Knuckles, I..."  
  
He turned, quickly. "Yes...?"  
  
"I... I never thought myself to be the type to settle down..."  
  
He looked away, trying to hide his dissapointment. "Oh."  
  
Then she grinned her famous coy little grin. "But for you... I think I'll make an exeption."  
  
THIS caught his attention. "Rouge..."  
  
She stood up and held out her left hand formally, like a princess. "Knuckles the Echidna, I accept your proposal."  
  
He slid it on, carefully, but as soon as it was in place she grabbed him and kissed him deeply. When the finally broke off, Knuckles was astounded. "Wow, she said... yes. She said yes!" He started screaming; he was so happy. "GUYS, SHE SAID YES!"  
  
Everyone in the place started to applaud. Rouge grinned, blushing deeply. She slid back into her chair and held her face in her hands, trying to hide her embarrassment. "Oh my God..."  
  
Knuckles bent over. "Are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine, I just... oh, it's all so... sudden and exciting. I never thought..."  
  
Knuckles sat on the edge of the chair and placed his arm around her shoulders. "You know what? I never thought either. But here we are anyway."  
  
She smiled widely. "I love you...."  
  
He answered by tipping her head back and connecting his mouth to hers. "And I love you too..." he whispered when they parted.  
  
Everyone cheered. They walked out of the restuarant, feeling giddy and high. "Knuckles, what do we do now?"  
  
"I... don't know. Let's go do stuff."  
  
"I'm game."  
  
Amy ran to the window and sighed dreamily as the happy couple walked to Rouge's car. "Oh Sonic..." she cried to the blue hedgehog that was walking up behind her, "Isn't it romantic?"  
  
"Yeah..." he replied thoughtfully, as he stared out the window. "Amy, I..."  
  
She looked up at him with curious green eyes. "Yes?"  
  
"I... I've been doing a lot of thinkng, and I came to a conclusion."  
  
"Really? What is it?"  
  
"I think..." he turned to her and clasped her hands. "I think I'm falling for you, Amy Rose..."  
  
"Ohhh!" A wide smile spread across her tiny face. "Oh Sonikku..." she breathed.  
  
Shadow watched from his booth as the blue and pink forms connected. "Man, if this isn't the night for romance..." he looked at the floor, a sad smile on his face.  
  
Tails frowned from behind his dessert. "Shadow? Are you okay?"  
  
"...I was just thinking. Those four don't truly realize how lucky they are. Sure, they only have one lifetime together, but I have eternity alone." He waved it off. "But that's the way things are. And I have to deal with it, whether I like it or not."  
  
Tails swallowed some whipped cream in thought. "I wonder if I'll have a girlfriend someday..."  
  
Shadow chuckled and reached across the table, ruffling Tails' fur on his head. "Don't rush it, kiddo. There'll be a girl for you."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
And so, dear readers, this marks the end of "PROJECT: Nightmare". But I bet you're wondering what happened to the characters during the time after this eventful November evening. Well...  
  
Sonic and Shadow went through Eggman's now vacant base on White Island. The Chaos Emeralds were given to GUN officials, who confiscated them all around the world for safe-keeping. Everything else was destroyed, except for the original files written by Professor Gerald on "PROJECT: Shadow", which Shadow requested keeping for his own purposes.  
  
Rouge and Knuckles are doing quite fine. Rouge is making plans to move up to Angel Island shortly before their wedding, which is set to take place in about two months.  
  
Sonic and Amy have gone on several more dates since their night at the Welcome Buffet. He is thinking hard about getting a ring, but has many doubts. Knuckles is doing what he can to push Sonic into getting one.  
  
Tails has befriended Shadow quite a bit, and they recently opened a small shop together, where Tails uses his mechanical expertise to repair bikes, cars, and the like; and where Shadow sells firewood during the cold months. :)  
  
Speaking of Shadow, he is doing rather well in his new apartment. He rents a place right above Amy, and they often get together with Sonic. The Chao come to visit him daily, and Shadow lends them a hand when they need it. Still, he has spent many a night on the balcony outside his bedroom, where he reflects on his fears on how he must always remain alone.  
  
As for Eggman, well... that's another story for another day!  
  
~*FIN*~ 


End file.
